Former Narsingdi-2 lawmaker blacklisted for embezzling fertiliser: Minister
Kamrul Ashraf Khan Poton, a former lawmaker from the Narsingdi-2 constituency, has been blacklisted for embezzling 72,000 tonnes of government fertilisers through his contracting company, said Agriculture Minister Md Abdur Razzaque.
"We have blacklisted him [Poton]. He will not be able to participate in any of our tenders, and proceedings are underway to take action against him," said the minister while talking to reporters at the secretariat after a national coordination and consultation committee meeting on fertiliser at the ministry on Monday.
Findings of a BCIC investigation under the Ministry of Industries show that 72,000 tonnes of chemical fertilisers imported by the government were embezzled by M/S Poton Traders, the contractor in charge of transportation, after releasing those from the port, incurring a loss of Tk582 crores of the government.
Of the total 6,842,500 tonnes demand for 11 types of fertilisers in the fiscal year 2023-24, the demand for urea has been fixed at 27 lakh tonnes, DAP [diammonium phosphate] 16 lakh tonnes, TSP [triple superphosphate] 7.5 lakh tonnes and MOP [muriate of potash] nine lakh tonnes for, said the minister.
According to the latest estimates, Tk15,000 crores has been given as fertiliser subsidies this year, and another subsidy of Tk11,000 crores is pending, Razzaque added, mentioning that the total figure of subsidies will be known by the end of the year.
"There is no plan to increase the price of fertiliser in the next fiscal year," the minister said further.