If farmers survive, the country will survive, Bengal first,” the slogan of the entire country

Potato farmers and stakeholders’ organization “Potato Value Chain Promotional Body” held a human chain in Thakurgaon and submitted a memorandum to the District Commissioner demanding that the cold storage fee for potatoes be fixed at 5 taka.

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The ‘Value Chain Promotional Body’, an organization of potato farmers and stakeholders formed under the Ministry of Agriculture’s partner project, made this demand in a human chain at the city’s central intersection at 11 am on Sunday. Later, they submitted a memorandum to the Deputy Commissioner.

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It has been alleged that the rent for storing potatoes in cold storage has been increased more than twice in three years without any logical reason. During this time, the price of potatoes produced by farmers has not increased much. In this situation, the organization of potato farmers and stakeholders has demanded that the government set the price by reducing the rent for storing potatoes in cold storage by five taka.

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Potatoes are produced in about 42 districts of the country. Among them, Bogra, Munshiganj, Joypurhat, Rangpur, Dinajpur, Thakurgaon, Panchagarh, Nilphamari, Kurigram, Chandpur, Gaibandha, Lalmonirhat and Rajshahi districts are famous for potato cultivation. The potatoes produced by the farmers of this region are supplied all over the country and exported outside the country.

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The speakers said that potatoes are perishable agricultural products, there is no alternative to cold storage to properly store potatoes. And taking advantage of this opportunity, cold storage owners have increased the storage rent in stages without any reason. The rent has been increased more than twice in three years. In 2023, the storage rent for a 65 kg sack of potatoes was increased by 40 taka to 280 taka. In 2024, the rent was increased again to 300 taka. In 2025, without any logical reason, the Cold Storage Owners Association increased the storage rent for potatoes per kg from 5 taka to 8 taka. That is, the storage of a 65 kg sack of potatoes has been increased from 300 taka to 520 taka in one go.

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The Department of Agricultural Marketing, under the powers conferred by Section 16 (b) of the Agricultural Marketing Act, 2018, fixed the storage fee for potatoes at Tk 6.75 per kg on March 2, 2025. This fee was fixed for storing potatoes in cold storage based on a weight of 50 kg per bag, but farmers store 65 kg of potatoes in cold storage. Taking advantage of the opportunity, cold storage owners have collected storage fees of Tk 400 to 520 per bag of potatoes.

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In this situation, the potato ‘Value Chain Promotional Body’ on behalf of potato farmers is demanding that the storage fee for potatoes at the cold storage level be fixed at 5 taka per kilogram.

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Present at the human chain were Vanu Chain Promotional Body Thakurgaon Sadar Upazila President Lutfar Rahman, General Secretary S.M. Ataur Rahman, Joint General Secretary Abdul Rahim, Baliadangi Upazila President Abdul Salam, marginal potato farmers of the district and leaders and activists of the organization.