PUTRAJAYA, Feb 25 — Ten kg packs of subsidised local white rice (BPT) will be available for RM26 starting on Saturday (March 1), said Rice and Paddy Regulatory Division director-general Datuk Badrul Hisham Mohd.
The rice will be sold to 400,000 low-income heads of households, including 77,000 extreme poor households, with each household limited to purchasing two packs per transaction.
He is confident that the supply will be sufficient, noting that the average Malaysian consumes about 77 kg of rice per year. Measures are also in place to prevent stockpiling and market manipulation.
“My team has established a control mechanism and we will issue a specific directive to retailers to limit purchases,” Badrul said during a press conference on the BPT subsidy scheme today.
The subsidised rice will be distributed through 36,000 licensed retailers across the country and will also be available at Agro Madani and Rahmah sales events. Distribution will focus on low-income urban areas, such as flats and public housing.
The first batch of subsidised rice will be available at an Agro Madani sale in Kedah this Thursday (February 27).
Between 10,000 and 20,000 bags of local rice will also be sold during Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s visit to the Muda Agricultural Development Authority (MADA) in Alor Setar.
— Bernama
