Agriculture Minister Dr Mohammad Abdur Razzaque on Tuesday said the country is spending Tk 300 billion as fertiliser subsidy this year, which is almost four times more than last year.
Apart from this, of the amount, about Tk 270 billion has already been subsidised in this regard.
The minister came up with the information with journalists after the meeting of the National Coordination and Advisory Committee on Fertilisers at the Bangladesh Secretariat on Tuesday morning.
Industries Minister Nurul Majid Mahmud Humayun, among others, was present at the meet.
Mr Razzaque said that due to the Covid situation, the prices of fertilisers worldwide have gone up dramatically, while the supply of fertiliser is being disrupted due to the Ukraine-Russia war.
In the last 2020-21 financial year, the subsidy was Tk 77.17 billion, he stated.
The minister said that food security is very important right now while commodity prices have risen sharply due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the ongoing Ukraine-Russia war.
Citing the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), he said global food prices rose to a record high in March.
The threat of food crisis has increased all over the world while in some developed countries like Canada which export food, people are queuing up to buy packets of bread, the agriculture Minister added.
sajibur@gmail.com