Narinjara News
Dhaka, March 7: Since the
Burmese governments production of agricultural
fertilizers has not been able to cover the domestic demand, the sea-smuggling
trade of fertilizer from Bangladesh
is thriving.
Fertilizer is reported to be the most profitable
item, fetching about two hundred percent profit.
As far as I know, exporting fertilizer to Burma
is the best business at the moment. Bangladesh
produces a sack of sulphur, priced at 280 Taka, but
it will cost at least 10,000 kyat ( equivalent to 650
Taka) in Burma.
Even if you pay tax to the government and officials, it still profits a lot
says a fertilizer trader from Cox's Bazar.
The Burmese junta just turns a blind eye to the
smuggling of fertilizer in order to fill the demand and supply gap.
However, the Bangladeshi government is trying to
stop the smuggling by arresting the smugglers and confiscating the boats, since
the smuggling leaves Bangladesh
with higher prices for fertilizer. High quality TSP fertilizer that used to
sell for 690 Taka in Bangladesh, now costs 800 Taka.
Burma
as a whole needs about 10 million tons of fertilizer a year; the rice industry
alone uses 2 million tons, according to an agricultural study