The New Nation - Internet Edition

UNB, Bogra

Finance and Planning Adviser Dr Mirza Azizul Islam Sunday asked Rajshahi Krishi Unnayan Bank (RAKUB) to play special role in making the government's northern region development programme successful.

"The government has undertaken various development programmes to remove income disparity of people of the northern region," he told RAKUB managers' conference at the Ziaur Rahman Medical College Auditorium here.

The Adviser gave the directive a day after the Council of Advisers held its first-ever meeting outside Dhaka to set a strategy to remove income disparity of the northern region.

The Council of Advisers at its meeting in Rangpur on Saturday gave a nod to a 14-point programme for the rapid socioeconomic development of the region.

The programmes include close and round-the-clock supervision for ensuring the Boro production in the coming season, formation of a committee headed by an Adviser to resolve Monga problem, setting up of a full-fledged university in Rangpur, activating the airports of the region and taking measures to export more manpower from the region.

The Finance Adviser called upon the RAKUB executives to take more initiatives to bring in more entrepreneurs in the agriculture sector for increasing production and creating employment opportunities. The agriculture sector contributes 60 percent in employment, he said. "Shun bureaucratic attitude," he told the conference, advising the bank executives to be sincere with the loan applicants and infuse team spirit in the bank's internal management.

Dr Aziz stressed the need for simplifying the bank's credit procedure to make it as realistic as necessary to alleviate poverty. He expressed satisfaction over the bank's loan disbursement of Tk 376.59 crore so far out of its total credit target of Tk 800 crore in the current fiscal year. He, however, asked the bankers to overcome all limitations to achieve the credit target.

RAKUB managing director Jaglul Karim, DGM of Bogra region Mohammed Abdul Khaleque Khan and DGM of Chapainababganj Asadur Rahman also addressed the conference, presided by bank chairman Mohammed Yahya Molla.