City Desk :
The government will launch a special open market sale (OMS) programme for three months in the 14 flood-hit districts under Chattogram and Sylhet divisions, aiming to provide the affected people with rice and flour at subsidized rates
Ismail Hossain, secretary to the Food Ministry, came up with the information while talking to reporters at a press briefing held over the food stock and the government’s assistance for the flood victims.
The special OMS will be provided to 230 centres in those affected districts and every day 230 tonnes of rice and 230 tonnes of flour will be sold from these centres.
A total of 14,490 metric tonnes of rice and 14,490 metric tonnes of flour will be sold under the special OMS programme in September, October and November, he said.
Per kg of rice will be sold at Tk 30, flour at Tk 24 and packet flour(each packet contains 2 kg) at Tk 55, he added.
The Food ministry will provide Tk 90,68, 18, 682 as subsidy for the special food programme.
Besides, the selling of rice and flour under OMs programme in all district headquarters and municipalities in Dhaka, Narayanganj, Gazipur and Narsingdi districts will underway.
Mentioning that there is no scarcity of food, the food secretary said people do not need to worry over it.
Till August 31, a total of 11.25 lakh tonnes of rice have been procured agaisn the 11 lakh tonnes.
People from all walks of life, alongside numerous non-profit organisations, have stepped up their efforts to rescue and provide relief to the millions affected by the floods in Sylhet and Chattogram divisions.
In an outpouring of support, students, professionals, social media influencers, athletes, artists and people across all religious backgrounds are rallying to aid those affected.
Many have even travelled to the flood-hit areas carrying boats and other equipment on trucks to assist in the rescue efforts.
On Facebook, some are sharing posts to raise funds for the victims.
Teachers and students from various universities are collecting funds and sending relief materials to the affected areas.
The Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, the platform that spearheaded the recent uprising, has beefed up its collection and rescue efforts for the flood-hit people. It yesterday launched a programme called “mass relief collection” at TSC.
“There’s a line of vehicles at TSC, each filled with relief materials collected on personal initiatives. There are so many people coming to donate that the volunteers are struggling to deal with the volume of donations,” Samiul Haque Sami, a Dhaka University student, wrote on Facebook, along with a photo of the crowd.
Prothom Alo Trust has sought emergency financial aid to support those affected by the floods.
On its Facebook page, Prothom Alo Bondhushava said they are distributing 10 tonnes of food items to 1,100 families.
Many artists and sports celebrities also urged people to extend their support to the flood victims.
“Our only slogan is: People are for people,” ace cricketer Tamim Iqbal wrote in his Facebook post yesterday, urging all to help the flood victims
The interim government has welcomed the people’s eagerness to extend their assistance and cooperation and said the interested can contribute by sending money to the bank account of “Chief Adviser’s Relief and Welfare Fund”.
Earlier, The government has expressed its appreciation for the many who are eager to assist those affected by the recent floods, according to a message from the press secretary to Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus.
Interested individuals can send their contributions to the following account of the Chief Adviser’s Relief and Welfare Fund: Account Name: ‘Chief Advisor’s Relief and Welfare Fund’
Bank Name: Sonali Bank Corporate Branch, Chief Advisor’s Office
Account Number: 0107333004093
Routing Number: 200263739
The government assures that all donated funds will be used for relief and welfare and that proper records will be maintained.