The government is going to introduce Farmer Cards for 20,671 landless, marginal and small farmers to combines direct financial assistance with expanded access to agricultural services.

Under the initiative, eligible farmers will receive Tk 2,500 annually, alongside access to subsidised inputs and a range of farming-related services delivered through a dedicated card system.

Agriculture Minister Mohammad Amin Ur Rashid announced the initiative on Sunday, coinciding with the launch of the Farmer Card distribution programme on Pahela Baishakh.

Initially, in the pre-piloting stage, this farmer card program has been started in 11 blocks of 11 upazilas of 10 districts of eight divisions of the country. At this stage, information of a total of 22,065 farmers has been collected, including 20,671 marginal and small farmers.

In addition, the list also includes crop farmers, fishermen, livestock farmers and salt farmers, the minister added.

According to the minister, 20,671 of the registered farmers -- primarily landless, marginal and small holders -- have been selected for financial incentives, accounting for 93.7 per cent of the database.