Cabinet Committee on Government Purchase approved some 10 proposals including procurement of edible oil by the TCB, and fertliser by BADC and BCIC. Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) will again purchase a total of 1.65 crore (16.5 million) litres of edible oil from three local companies to run its open marketing sale (OMS) programme. The state marketing agency TCB, a subordinate body of the Commerce Ministry, last week received a nod for procuring 2.25 crore (22.5 million) litres of soybean oil and 15,000 metric tons of lentils from local suppliers for the same purpose. Cabinet Committee on Government Purchase (CCGP) in its meeting on Wednesday approved three new separate proposals, placed by the Commerce Ministry on behalf of TCB in this regard. Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal presided over the virtual meeting. As per the decision of the CCGP meeting, the TCB will procure 55 lakh (5.5 million) litres of soybean oil from each of the three companies—Super Oil Refinery Ltd., City Edible Oil Ltd and Meghna Edible Oil Refinery of Dhaka. Each litre will cost Tk 185 and each of the companies will supply the edible oils through two-llitre bottles as per condition of the contract. The entire consignment will cost Tk 305.25 crore as the TCB will pay Tk101.75 crore to each of the three companies. The Cabinet body also approved three separate proposals to import a total of 90,000 metric tons of fertiliser from two countries in three lots under G2G deals. Read: TCB to procure 2.25 litres of soybean oil, 15,000 mts of lentil for OMS Of these, Bangladesh Agriculture Development Corporation (BADC) under the Ministry of Agriculture will import 30,000 MT of TSP fertiliser in a single lot from OCP, SA of Morocco while Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC) will 90,000 MT of urea fertiliser Muntajat of Qatar and Kafco of Bangladesh in three separate lots. The 30,000 MT fertiliser from Morocco will cost Tk 221.53 crore while each metric ton will cost $687.25 against the previous rate of $ 914.50. Under the BCIC proposals, the Muntajat will supply a lot of 30,000 MT of bagged prilled urea fertiliser at a cost of Tk 206.59 crore. Each MT of fertiliser will cost724.50 against the previous rate of $563.33. The Mutajat will supply another lot of 30,000 MT bulk granuller urea at Tk 209.10 crore.  Each metric ton will cost $733.33 MT against a previous rate $ 630.83. The Committee also approved a proposal of the National Curriculum and Textbook Board (NCTB) to award contracts for printing, binding and supplying of 11.20 lakh textbooks for the students from class I to VII for the 2023 session-year at Tk 489.25 crore. The contracts will be awarded to 83 companies in 182 lots, said Abdul Barik, additional secretary of the Cabinet Division while briefing reporters. A proposal of the Public Works Department under the Housing and Public Works Ministry received a nod to award a Tk 41.86 crore contract to Mazid Sons Constructions Ltd for external electrification works of 2 buildings at Rooppur Green City Housing Complex. Meanwhile, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs in principle approved two separate proposals to award contracts through direct purchase method. Of these, Bangladesh Army will execute dredging and river bank protection works at Majhirchar of Dohar area and elevation of ground level of army installations, wave protection and arrow defense works at Army Establishment in Mithamoin Upazila of Kishorganj District.

The government has set a target to procure  6.50 lakh metric tonnes (mts)  of of Boro paddy and 11 lakh mts of boiled rice and 0.50 lakh mts non-boiled rice in the  upcoming season in 2022. The rice and paddy procurement will begin on April 28 and continue till August 31 this year. The procurement price of Boro paddy has been fixed at Tk 27 per kg, boiled rice at Tk 40 per kg and Atap rice(non-boiled) at Tk 39. The decision was taken at a virtual meeting of the Food Planning and Monitoring Committee with Food Minister Sadhan Chandra Majumder in the chair on Thursday. Also read: Don't eat white rice, advises food minister About rice price hike, Food Minister Sadhan Chandra Majumder said the prices of thin rice in the market have increased slightly as people’s food habit has changed while  that of coarse rice have declined. “In last few weeks the coarse rice prices have declined as most of it is used for non-human consumption.  People becoming more dependent on thin rice that  caused hike in price,” he said . Sadhan Chandra urged Agriculture Minister Abdur Razzque  for taking steps to boost the production of thin rice considering the price hike. Agriculture Minister Abdur Razzaque  said an all-out effort has been taken to increase overall agricultural production. He said the production of two newly invented varieties of Boro paddy - Bri-89 and Bri-92 - is being increased. Also read: Food grain storage capacity to be increased to 35 lakh mts by 2030: Food Minister “Production of these two varieties of paddy will be higher and rice will be thinner,” he added. Apart from it, to increase food production cultivation of high yielding varieties of paddy is being increased, he said.