KHULNA, Oct 17: Speakers at a function on Wednesday underscored the need for rat killing, urging agriculture officials, experts and workers, farmers and common people to turn the rat killing campaign into an effective social movement to save huge crops for ensuring food security.
"Rats destroy at least seven lakhs tonnes food grains in a year across the country. So, everyone should participate in rat killings for saving crops," they said while addressing a discussion meeting and prize distribution ceremony marking the month-long rats killing campaign and World Food Day.
The meeting was held in the conference room of the Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) office in Daulatpur Upazila.
Besides, rats also do harm to the poultry farms by making holes and eating eggs, chicks and poultry feed worth Tk 18,000 from each farm every year. Rats also damage boundaries of arable land, roads, flood control embankments, irrigation canals and other properties.
The amount of paddy that is destroyed by rats every year is sufficient for feeding over 60 lakh people of the country, speakers noted.
The Khulna region DAE and Khulna Metropolitan Agricultural Office jointly organized the programme.
Additional Divisional Commissioner (ADC-Development) of Khulna Abu Sayed Md Monjur Morshed addressed the function as the chief guest. Director of Khulna Zone DAE Bivas Chandra Saha presided over the meeting.
ADC (LA) Taslima Akter and Deputy Director of Khulna District DAE Kazi Zahangir Hossain addressed as special guests.
The chief guest said, various crops and food grains, such as paddy, wheat, maize, groundnut, fruits and vegetables worth about Tk 500 crore are being either damaged or eaten up by rats every year.
Side by side with destroying 10 to 12 per cent or even more of cereal and other crops, rats damage boundaries of arable lands, roads, flood control embankments, irrigation canals and other properties every year in the country, he added.
The meeting also informed, rats are carrying and spreading about 60 types of diseases including plague, jaundice, typhoid, dysentery, fever, among human and animals. Through breeding, a pair of mice can turn into about 3,000 mice in a year.
Rats destroy food grains including paddy and wheat around 7 to 12 per cent of total production in a year.
Later on, the chief guest distributed certificates and crest among successful winners and organizations for rat killings.
Earlier, a colourful rally was brought out in the city that begun from the Khulna Agriculture Zone office.
