March 19, 2024, 1:50 pm


Abu Taher Bappa

Published:
2020-08-13 18:57:29 BdST

Govt to procure 30,000 tonnes of urea fertilizer


The Cabinet Committee on Government Purchase approved on Wednesday two proposals including one for procuring 30,000 metric tons of bagged granular urea fertilizer from Karnaphuli Fertilizer Company Limited (KAFCO), Bangladesh with a cost of around Taka 57.60 crore.

The approval came from the 18th meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Government Purchase held today with Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal in the chair. Ministers concerned attended the meeting virtually.

Briefing the reporters after the meeting virtually, Kamal said the Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC) is procuring this 30,000 metric tons of bagged granular urea fertilizer under the 2nd lot from KAFCO, Bangladesh. The government is set to get 5.50 lakh metric tons of fertilizer from KAFCO in the current fiscal year (FY21) under an agreement with it.

The purchase committee meeting approved another proposal for appointing Joint Venture of Dev Consults Limited, Dhaka (Lead Firm), BETS, Consulting Services Limited. JV, Bangladesh and Mas Bangla Consulting Ltd (sub-consult) Bangladesh as the consultants for the project titled ‘Water supply and sanitation in 30 pourashavas in Bangladesh’ with a cost of Taka 38.02 crore.

The Finance Minister said IDA of the World Bank and the AIIB are the development partners of this project while the aforesaid consultants have been awarded the project works after detailed study and scrutiny.

When asked about his meeting discussions with the Health Minister today over the Novel Coronavirus situation and the availability of its possible vaccines, the Finance Minister denied making comment on it in details since any final decision is yet to be taken.

Kamal, however, said he had suggested the Health Minister for not relying on a single source for getting the vaccines, rather trying to collect COVID-19 vaccines (if discovered) from multiple sources.

In this connection, he said many countries of the world have already signed contracts with many firms for getting vaccines adding that Bangladesh could go towards such contractual obligation.

The Finance Minister said Bangladesh can associate with Oxford or any other Indian firm or could explore all the possible sources for getting possible COVID-19 vaccines. “We need vaccines …..”

He said perhaps the COVID-19 vaccines, developed by Russia, could hit the market first adding, “They will make the vaccines and we need to communicate with them for getting it,”

Kamal also informed that a fund has already been kept for procuring vaccines.

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