Bangladesh offers cheaper rice to garment workers
DHAKA: Bangladesh launched a programme on Friday to sell rice to garment workers at Tk 30 a kilogram, aiming to lower their food bills. Each worker can buy up to 10 kilograms a month through the government’s Open Market Sale programme, which sells essential goods below market prices.
The Ministry of Food said 66 trucks would sell rice in Dhaka city, Savar, Dhamrai, Gazipur, Narayanganj and parts of Chattogram district. Each truck will carry five tonnes for sale every Friday, bringing the weekly supply to 330 tonnes.
Workers must show their factory identity cards and sign a register to buy rice. Friday sales will run from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and from 2:30 p.m. to 5 p.m., while stocks last.
The ministry linked the plan to a pledge by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party to expand support for people on low incomes and improve access to basic foods.
The launch comes amid protests in garment factory areas over pay. The Minimum Wage Board, formed earlier this month, has met twice. At its meeting on Monday, the workers’ representative proposed raising the minimum wage for garment workers to Tk 32,000.
