Responding to a question about increased rice imports into the country despite the government's claims that Bangladesh is self-sufficient in food, Agriculture Minister Begum Matia Chowdhury said on Saturday the government had not imported a 'Chhatak' of rice, reports UNB.
"There was no duty on food import in Bangladesh and some people have imported rice using this opportunity," she added. She came up with the remark at the 116th episode of BBC Sanglap, organised by BBC Media Action and BBC Bangla at the Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) auditorium in the city.
The minister also said that the government had already decided to impose 10 per cent duty on rice imports only one day ago. Speaking at the programme, BNP standing committee member Lt Gen (retd) Mahbubur Rahman said it was a reality that the farmers cultivated crops but were bound to sell them at throwaway prices.
He also thinks there are government's policy failures behind the low price of farmers' crops.
Matia denies govt importing rice
FE Team | Published: May 10, 2015 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00
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