Owners of the poultry farms on Thursday gave away 25,000 one-day old chicks to people and broke around 5,000 eggs on the street in front of the National Press Club in the capital in protest at the losses they have incurred due to the ongoing political unrest.
Bangladesh Poultry Industries Coordination Committee, a platform of poultry farmers, organised the protest programmes at a human chain it formed in front of the National Press Club to press their 10-point demands including bank interest waiver for six months from October.
Leaders of the association requested the people to take the chicks with them and feed them (the chicks) as the poultry farm owners could not bear to see the chicks die because of scarcity of feed amid political turmoil.
They said the supply of the poultry feed had been disrupted seriously and the feed production also tumbled and the poultry farm owners had not money to buy feed for the chicks.
BPICC convenor Moshiur Rahman said, ‘36,000 farms have already been closed and 70 lakh people are about to lose their jobs in the sector due to the losses farm owners have incurred amid political unrest. More than 15,000 tonnes of broiler chicken and around 3.15 crore eggs remain unsold every week due to the unrest.’
Breeders are forced to destroy around 30 lakh one-day old chicks every week due to scarcity of feed and transportation facilities and poultry medicines worth Tk 15 crore remain unsold every week due to the political unrest, Moshiur said.
-With New Age input
