Bangladesh is set to import 100,000 tonnes of parboiled rice to shore up grain stocks even though the harvesting of the Aman paddy is underway across the country.
Half of the non-basmati rice will come from Singapore's Agrocorp International at a cost of $397.03 per tonne, while India's Bagadiya Brothers will supply the remainder at $393.19 per tonne, according to bdnews24.com.
The Cabinet Committee on Government Purchase (CCGP) finalised the decision at a meeting presided over by Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal on Wednesday, according to Additional Secretary Syed Mahbub Khan.
In terms of taka, the rice from India and Singapore will cost Tk 42 and Tk 42.68 a kg, respectively.
The government is aiming to collect 500,000 tonnes of rice at Tk 42 per kg and 300,000 tonnes of paddy at Tk 28 during the current Aman harvest.
According to the food ministry's estimates, it had amassed 563 tonnes of paddy and 152,688 tonnes of rice until Jan 2. If the paddy is converted into rice, the amount will rise to 153,062 tonnes.
At present, the government silos together contain 1.45 million tonnes of rice and 1,082 tonnes of paddy.