The government has beefed up monitoring through appointing a high-powered vigilance team for nine districts to look after the marketing and supply-side of fuel and fertiliser in the country's northern region. The region is facing an acute shortage of fertiliser and gasoline products. The committee started functioning from Thursday. Its members have been empowered to undertake remedial measures like arrangements of speedy supply of fertiliser to the affected districts. In the meantime, government is supplying 16,000 tonnes of urea each day in the northern and western regions of the country since last Wednesday. Fertiliser is being supplied to those areas from the capital city's Aminbazar and Badamtoly depots by trucks and from Chittagong through river routes. Sources at the ministry of industries said they would continue supplies until normalcy returns in the regions. The shortage of fertiliser has been prevailing in some districts of northern and western regions of country during the on-going Irri-Boro cultivation. The demand for urea is estimated around 1.0 million tonnes for the season. However, the government has claimed that it has adequate stocks of urea and there is no crisis of fertiliser in the country. Farmers at northern districts have resorted to agitation programmes including bringing out of rallies. Scuffles with dealers were also reported while the farmers were protesting the short supply of fertiliser over the last couple of days. The following officials have been assigned for monitoring fuel and fertiliser supplies: Shafiz Uddin Ahmed at Kushtia, Md Motiur Rahman at Jhenaidah, Kabir Mohammed Ashraf Alam at Jessore, Golam Nabi at Satkhira, Md Ataur Rahman at Chuadanga, Mesbahul Alam at Narail, Mohammed Harun Chowdhury at Chapainababganj, Begum Musfeka Iqfat at Serajganj and Kazi Akhter Hossain.
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