Dhaka: The Cabinet on Tuesday approved in principle the drafts of Bangladesh Sugarcrop Research Institute (BSRI) Bill-2018 and Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation (BTRC) Bill-2018.

The approval was given at the weekly meeting of the Cabinet held at the Prime Minister’s Office with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair, reports the UNB.

The Cabinet also approved the draft Export Policy 2018-2021, said Cabinet Secretary Mohammad Shafiul Alam while briefing reporters at the Secretariat after the meeting.

The annual report of all the ministries and divisions on their activities in 2017-2018 fiscal year was also placed before the Cabinet meeting.

According to the report, the per capita income increased to US$ 1,751 in 2017-18 from US$ 1,602 in the previous fiscal year, said Shafiul. ‘The per capita income, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and the revenue collection saw a rise in the 2017-2018 fiscal year than the previous financial year,’ he said, adding that the GDP growth rate has reached 7.86 percent.

The export volume was 41.1US$ billion while the export growth rate was 7.75 percent in the last fiscal year, he said.

In the fiscal year 2016-2017, the revenue collection was Tk 230,965 crore which is 14.78 percent higher than the previous year.

Shafiul said the remittance inflow was 14.98 US $ billion, showing an increase by 17.31 percent from the previous year.

Besides, the poverty rate came down to 21.1 percent from 23.1 percent in 2016-2017 while the extreme poverty rate stood at 11.3 percent from 12.1 percent.

Meanwhile, the Cabinet adopted a resolution greeting the Bangladesh Under-15 football team for clinching the SAFF Under-15 championship beating Pakistan in the final, the Cabinet Secretary said.

Replying to a query about the continuation of the Cabinet meeting, he said it will continue as usual no matter whether there is the current government or a caretaker government.

About the Prime Minister’s directive to the four technocrat ministers to step down, Shafiul said he said he is unaware of it. ‘We’re ready to take further step after getting directive in this regard,’ he said.