DHAKA,  –Amid countrywide onion price hike, triggered by the Indian export ban, Agriculture Minister Dr Abdur Razzaque today asked the concerned researchers and scientists to devise an action plan with a target to become self-sufficient in onion production.

“The country is facing critical situation with the essential, so we have to be self-sufficient in onion production”, he said in an online address while reviewing central research and programme formulation of Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI) here.

To face the onion crisis, the minster has asked the concerned researchers, scientists and officials to come up with a specific action plan for achieving self-sufficiency in onion output.

Dr Razzaque asked all concerned organizations including the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) and BARI to finalize an action plan as soon as possible on the period that is required to the country to minimize the onion deficit.

State minister for Youth and Sports Zahid Ahsan Rasel and Agriculture Secretary M Nasiruzzaman also joined the programme as the special guests.

“We have to produce summer variety onion for achieving autarky in onion production. All the necessary assistance including seed, technology and other ingredients will be provided to the growers on behalf of the government”, the minister added.

Ahead of the next summer season, Dr Razzaque also give instructions to the concerned officials to fix up seed demand and onion production target along with upazila-wise enrolment of the onion growers within a couple of months.

Chaired by BARI Director General Dr M Nazirul Islam, the online meeting was also joined, among others, by noted scientist Dr Kazi M Badruddoza, former DAE DG M Hamidur Rahman, DAE DG Dr M Abdul Muyeed, Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation (BADC) Chairman M Sayedul Islam, Bangladesh Agricultural Research Council (BARC) Executive Chairman Dr Sheikh M Bakhtiar and BARI Director Dr M Miaruddin.

BARI, a largest agriculture research organization conducting research on all crops except rice, jute, sugarcane and tea, so far has invented a total of 1136 crops production technology including 585 high yielding variety (HYV) and 551 upgraded variety of wheat, maze, pulse, oilseed and other horticultural crops.

The institute also has been invented 280 types of hybrid and HYV crop varieties including wheat, maize, pulse, vegetables, fruits, flowers and spices and nearly 270 types of standard crop management technology in the last ten years since 2009.