Around 400 farmers in Ulipur upazila staged a protest yesterday morning, blocking the Kurigram-Chilmari regional road to demand the timely delivery of fertiliser. The demonstration took place near Natun Anantapur Bazar starting around 11:30 a.m., with protesters setting fire to tyres and disrupting traffic for approximately 90 minutes.

Farmers had gathered early at the market, expecting fertiliser distribution by Messrs Sufia Enterprise, a local dealer. However, representatives from the company did not arrive with the fertiliser by 9:30 a.m., prompting frustration among the farmers who said they had repeatedly come away empty-handed in recent days.

Authorities, including the Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO), the Ulipur police officer-in-charge, and agriculture officials, responded to the situation on-site. They assured the farmers that the fertiliser would be provided shortly, which helped to defuse tensions and allowed the distribution process to begin.

Shamsul Alam, manager of Messrs Sufia Enterprise, explained that the company faced significant pressure from farmers, who had crowded the site, leading to requests for assistance from authorities and resulting in distribution delays. Ulipur Upazila Agriculture Officer Shahidul Islam reported that 215 sacks of urea fertiliser were distributed to farmers present at the site.

UNO ATM Arif noted that the original distribution was planned to start at 8:00 a.m. but was postponed due to the large gathering of farmers. He emphasized that there was no shortage of fertiliser available.