Prime Minister Tarique Rahman announced that the government is set to inaugurate the ‘Farmer Card’ (Krishak Card) distribution programme on a pilot basis on April 14, coinciding with Pahela Baishakh.

The Premier disclosed the timeline while addressing the inaugural ceremony of the sports card and allowance distribution programme at his Tejgaon office on Monday morning.

He emphasized that the introduction of the Farmer Card is part of a consistent implementation of government pledges aimed at improving the living standards of the people, noting that the pre-pilot phase is currently underway with the continuous collection of data from all categories of farmers.

The Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) under the Ministry of Agriculture will implement the programme, which is scheduled to launch simultaneously across 11 selected upazilas.

These include Tangail Sadar, Shibganj in Bogura, Panchagarh Sadar, Boda in Panchagarh, Islampur in Jamalpur, Shailkupa in Jhenaidah, Nesarabad in Pirojpur, Juri in Moulvibazar, Cumilla Sadar, Goalanda in Rajbari, and Teknaf in Cox’s Bazar.

Under this initiative, landless, marginal, and small farmers will receive an average of BDT 2,500 in subsidies or agricultural input assistance.

Additionally, the government will provide financial assistance to specific categories of farmers at determined rates during the Kharif-1 and Kharif-2 seasons.