The government started procuring paddy from internal sources from yesterday, Thursday.
At the rate of Tk 27 per kilogram (kg), the government will procure paddy directly from the farmers, while rice procurement will start from May 7 which will continue till August 31.
Food Minister Sadhan Chandra Majumder inaugurated the procurement program by joining the conference room of the Food Department through video conference.
Sadhan Chandra Majumder said, “No one can buy paddy without license and stockpile it illegally. The food department has to be informed about who is buying how much paddy and which mill owner is selling it. Food officials should send this information to the department regularly.”
The minister said that it would be closely monitored whether anyone was stockpiling illegally.
He said that although the procurement of paddy has started across the country Thursday, the procurement of rice will start from May 7. Mentioning that the mill owners have to sign an agreement with the Food Department from May 7 to May 16, he said the time for signing the agreement will not be extended in any way.
He added that there needs to be a clear plan to make the collection campaign a success. He directed the officials of the food department to carry out the collection activities as per the plan without rushing towards the ending of the collection season.
Secretary of the Ministry of Food, Nazmunara Kaham presided over the program while Director General of the Food Department Md. Sakhawat Hossain, Additional Secretary of the Ministry of Food (Administration) Md. Mojibur Rahman, Additional Director General of the Food Department Abdullah Al Mamun and Director (Collection) Md. Raihanul Kabir also spoke.
At the meeting of the Food Planning and Conservation Committee held on 24th February, in the current boro season, 650,000 tonnes of paddy at the rate of Tk 27 per kg, 11 lakh tonnes of rice at the rate of Tk 40 per kg and 50000 atap at a rate of Tk 39 per kg collection was set to be procured.
