Minister blames profiteering for rice price hike

Agriculture Minister Dr Muhammad Abdur Razzaque said millers, wholesalers and middlemen have united in hatching plots to destabilise the market and profiteer.     

Concern is growing over whether Aman paddy yields will reach their target due to prolonged flooding, and the quarter is active to cash in on it, said Razzaque while inaugurating a flood shelter in Tangail, Sunday.    

The minister said Boro production was good last season, but Aman paddy production is at risk due to prolonged floods – prompting concern that the production might miss its target. 

"Against this backdrop, we are noticing that the millers, wholesalers and middlemen are hatching plots together to profiteer. The government is very careful and strict about their conspiracies," he added.

The local rice market has been volatile for a couple of weeks, and traders have been raising the price of the staple whenever they get the chance.

The agriculture minister said there has been no food crisis in the country so far despite the pandemic. "We are fully prepared so that the country does not face a food crisis in the upcoming days."

The Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief is constructing the flood shelter as part of the Flood Shelter Construction Project in Flood-Prone Areas.