Food Minister Sadhan Chandra Majumder said on Thursday that the nutritional value of rice is lost due to excessive trimming and polishing.

“So, a law was enacted to ban polishing the rice, and it would be implemented from Aman season on,” he added.

The minister was speaking at a meeting with the officials of the Food Department on the occasion of the Boro paddy-rice collection campaign at Circuit House in Naogaon on Thursday afternoon.

He said that 16 to 20 lakh metric tonnes of rice are wasted due to excessive rice trimming and polishing. “If there is a law, this huge quantity of rice will be saved, and consumers can buy rice at a lower price.”

Regarding price tags on rice sacks, the food minister said that the work has already started. The sacks with prices and types of rice have started coming into the market.

Majumdar said that it will be ensured that no farmer or mill owner is harassed while giving paddy to the government food warehouse. “Strict action will be taken against the culprits in case of any complaint of harassment.”

In response to the question of whether the procurement of paddy will be successful, he said that measures are being taken to identify the reasons why the collection of paddy is not successful.

“The procurement of paddy will be successful, like rice collection this year,” he hoped.

Last year, rice was not imported into our country. Due to the timely action of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, production has increased multiple times, he added.

“This year, we had a bumper yield of Boro paddy as well,” he mentioned.

Published Date: May 2, 2024