Govt to procure 11 lakh tonnes of boro at Tk 32 a kg

The government on Tuesday decided to procure 10 lakh tonnes of husked boro rice and one lakh tonnes of un-husked rice from local market starting from May 1.
The boro rice procurement will continue till August 31, food minister Qumrul Islam told reporters after a meeting with the national food committee at the secretariat.
He said the government also fixed the procurement price of per kilogram boro husked rice at Tk 32 and un-husked rice at Tk 22 for the current season.
Last year, the government had procured 10 lakh tonnes of boro husked rice at the price of per kilogram boro rice at Tk 31.
He said the production cost of per kg boro paddy was calculated at Tk 20 while husked rice at Tk 27.
The government determined prices of boro crop so early in order to ensure fair price of rice for the benefit of the farmers, he said.
The meeting attended, among others, by finance minister AMA Muhith and agriculture minister Matia Chowdhury also decided to buy 1.5 lakh tonnes of wheat this season at Tk 28 per kilogram.
The procurement of wheat will begin from April 1 and it would continue up to June 30, he said.
Replying to a question, Qumrul said the production of boro was estimated at 1.90 crore tonnes while wheat production estimated at 14-15 lakh tonnes during the current season.
When asked, Harun-ur-Rashid, a farmer leader based in Ambikapur in Faridpur district told New Age on Tuesday that the government procurement price for boro would not benefit the small growers as they sell paddy not husked rice.
The millers will get benefit at the government decision, he said.
Besides, cost of production of rice has increased this year due to increased price of agricultural inputs as a result of blockade, he said.
He urged the government to reconsider decision to fix higher price and procure paddy directly from farmers with cash payment to ensure real benefit to the growers.