Livestock farmers in Daudkandi and Titas upazilas of Cumilla are facing difficulties in accessing veterinary services due to a shortage of manpower and inadequate supplies of medicines. The shortfall is hampering treatment, disease prevention and training programmes for farmers.
The Livestock Office and Veterinary Hospital in Daudkandi also serves farmers from neighbouring Titas upazila. As a result, the office has to provide services to people from both upazilas with limited manpower.
According to office sources, only seven employees are currently working against 11 sanctioned posts. The posts of office assistant and office support staff remain vacant. Of the four posts at the sub-assistant level, three are also vacant. The manpower shortage may worsen further when another employee leaves in December.
Upazila Livestock Officer Dr Emdadul Haque said an average of 60 to 70 people visit the hospital every day seeking treatment for their animals. Many others also seek veterinary advice over the phone.
“With adequate manpower, we could provide more effective services at the field level, arrange training for farmers, strengthen disease prevention activities and implement development projects more efficiently,” he said. He added that responding to emergencies, including rescuing and treating animals at the scene, had also become difficult due to the staff shortage.
Dr Haque said many poultry and cattle farmers lacked sufficient training and awareness about the proper use of medicines in poultry farming and cattle fattening. More manpower was needed to supervise these activities and improve farm management practices.
As Titas has no veterinary doctor, farmers from the upazila also travel to Daudkandi to seek treatment for their livestock, further increasing the workload of the hospital.
Regarding the shortage of medicines, Dr Haque said demand at the hospital was high in view of the number of livestock owners and commercial farmers in the area.
Certain medicines and vaccines are
supplied by the government free of cost, but it is not always possible to provide all medicines and vaccines without charge.
Shafiqul Islam, a cattle farmer from Yusufpur in Titas, said he had been rearing cattle for nearly 50 years and had long relied on the hospital for treatment and medical advice.
Jahiran Begum, who came from Nandanpur in Daudkandi, sought treatment after the milk production of her cow declined. She had to purchase medicines on the advice of the veterinarian.
Professor Matin Saikat, an Agriculture Important Person (AIP) and recipient of national awards for environmental and agricultural contributions, said staff shortages in agriculture-related government
offices could affect food production and farmers’ incomes. He urged the government to ensure adequate manpower in the agriculture and livestock sectors.
Cumilla District Livestock Officer Mohammad Shamsul Alam told the correspondent Saiful Islam that manpower shortages were widespread.
The authorities were informed of the problem twice a year, and the issue had also been raised during a minister’s visit.
He said the shortage could be addressed through the government’s recruitment process.
Regarding medicine supplies, Shamsul Alam said demand far exceeded the available budget. The authorities therefore tried to give priority to underprivileged and low-income farmers when distributing medicines within the limits of the available allocation.
People concerned said that recruiting adequate staff, increasing medicine allocations, providing training to farmers and strengthening emergency veterinary services would bring considerable relief to
livestock owners in Daudkandi and Titas.
They stressed that timely government intervention was essential to realise the potential of the livestock sector and increase its contribution to the rural economy.