ACI develops seeds targets food autarky in the country

Dated:

"As a result, the country will be able to stand on its own feet in all sectors of agricultural productions in near future," claimed Dr F H Ansarey, Managing Director (MD) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the ACI Limited.The chief of one of the leading business cum industrial houses said that the ACI has a turnover of more than six thousand crore taka per year and has invested Taka 50 crore for conducting research in the social agriculture across the country.

Ansarey, the key-man behind the ACI Motors Limited, ACI Agrolink Limited, Premiaflex Plastics Limited and ACI Agrobussinesses, in an exclusive interview with the Asian Age, said the ACI has invested its resources in the social agriculture to develop and change the lot of the toiling masses of the country, the MD and CEO of ACI Dr Ansarey said while addressing the problems of the agricultural sector of the country.

He said that the ACI, in the meantime, developed various yield of paddy, potato, maize, wheat seeds for offering high productivity in the agricultural sector of the country. The Technical Committee of the seeds run by the government has been verifying the seeds before presenting the samples to the National Seed Board for its approval.

The National Seeds Board is the highest board for recognizing the highly yield varieties of the seeds, Dr Ansarey said adding that the board was comprised by the Secretary of Agricultural Ministry, Chairman of Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation, Vice Chairman of Bangladesh Agricutural Research Council, Director General of Agricultural Extension Directorate, Joint Secretary of Finance Ministry, Director of Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation, Director General of Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute, Director General of Bangladesh Rice Research Institute and 16 other members from different ministries of the government.

After the approval from the National Seeds Board, the newly invented seeds will be produced by the ACI across the country for mass marketing to the marginal farmers, the ACI MD added.

The ACI laboratory has been conducting a series of research on some other seeds of food grains and vegetables, Dr Ansarey said adding that the government has been looking into the matter very positively for making the country self sufficient in the food and agricultural productions.

At present 17,00,000 agricultural laborers have been working in the agricultural sector of the country, Dr Ansarey said adding that at least 37 per cent of farm workers are lacking in the country during the harvesting season. The productivity of the country has been increasing rapidly in the country, he said adding that in 2041, the country will be developed like Singapore and be able to import its necessities from the other sources like Singapore.

The country is lacking in producing milk, Dr Ansarey said adding that it has been importing 2500 tons of milk from different sources. "We are importing 14 million tons of maize and 50,000 tons of wheat" Dr Ansarey said adding that the contribution of agriculture to our Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is 15.66 per cent annually.Stressing on the need of social Agriculture, Dr Ansarey said that the distribution system in our country is not based on fair play causing loss to the farm owners.

Dr Ansarey joined ACI in 1995 as head of Crop Protection Business and later set up a good number of new establishments for the ACI. Dr Ansarey set up ACI Formulations , Aerosol and Mosquito Coil Plant, Animal Health Product Manufacturing facility. He also set up Salt Refinery, Poultry Breeding Farm, Poultry Hatchery.Dr Ansarey had started his career in 1981 in Ciba Geigy and later joined Shetu Corporation as General Manager. Dr Ansarey has completed B Sc Honors in Zoology and earned Masters and PhD in Ecology.