The Bangladeshi caretaker government stopped subsidy to coarse variety of rice sold at fair price outlets in capital Dhaka in the wake of high price of foodstuff.
The government decision forced closure of 75 outlets run by paramilitary Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) from Friday.
The rice was sold at 25 taka (about 36 U.S. cents) per kilogram, cheaper than open market. Poor people were the buyers of such coarse rice.
Thousands of men, women and children were seen in long queue for hours to buy the rice from these outlets since they went into operation last September.
"We've suspended the outlets till June 9 as the government stopped subsidy from June 5," a senior BDR official said.
The official, who asked not to be named said they have shut down the outlets for four days. "If the government gives us subsidy, we will reopen the outlets. It depends on the government decision," he said.
Bangladesh lost huge food grains particularly paddy due to two floods and cyclone Sidr last year.
Besides, higher rice price on international market also cast adverse impact on the country's domestic market.
The government signed deal with Indian companies to buy 500,000tons of rice to meet the deficit of the rice production.
However, this summer the country had bumper harvest of paddy which helps stabilize the rice market.
"We have been able to harvest 17.6 million tons of paddy this season," caretaker government Foreign Advisor Dr Iftekhar Ahmed told a function here Friday.
The government is now procuring rice from farmers at 28 taka (about 40 cents) per kilogram.
Source: Xinhua
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