Business Desk :
The government will start the procurement of Boro paddy and rice from today (Thursday), which will continue till August 31.
“The official procurement of Boro rice and paddy begins on Thursday. However, it will take 1-2 days more to start the procurement activities countrywide in full phase,” Md Mozibor Rahman, additional secretary, Ministry of Food, told The Business Post.
Food Minister Sadhan Chandra Majumder will inaugurate the procurement activity from the Directorate General of Food, said Ministry sources.
In this Boro season, the government will procure 1.1 million tonnes of rice, 650,000 tonnes of paddy, and 50,000 tonnes of Atap rice (dried in the sun) directly from the farmers.
The Ministry of Food will procure paddy at Tk 27 per kg, rice at Tk 40 per kg, and Atap rice at Tk 39 per kg.
Currently, per kg of Boro rice price ranges between Tk 50-52 in the retail market and between Tk 46-48 in the wholesale market of the capital. However, according to the price chart of Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB), the rice price ranges between Tk 45-48 in the retail market.
Although the government is offering Tk 10-12 less for rice compared to the retail market, some farmers are already selling their paddy to the local market at a price lower than that fixed by the government while others are waiting for the price to increase, according to the Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) officials in haor districts.
“Farmers who have debts are selling their paddy at Tk 800-850 per 40kg which is lower than the government procurement rate of Tk 1,050,” said Bimol Chandra Shome, deputy director of DAE, Sunamganj.
“Around 74 per cent paddy of the district and 90 per cent paddy of the haor areas have been harvested. We are going to fields and advising farmers to sell their paddy or rice to the government,” he added.
