RANGPUR, March 30, 2020 (BSS) – The government is providing food to more
than 10.07-lakh poor, needy and jobless people to cope with special situation
caused by the coronavirus (COVID) outbreak in Rangpur division.
Additional Divisional Commissioner (General) Md. Zakir Hossain said over
10.07-lakh people in need are getting food assistance under two special
programmes of the government, including allocation of general relief rice and
cash money as well as food friendly programme.
Officials said the government recently allocated 1,600 tonnes of rice and
Taka 16-lakh for distribution among 1.60-lakh needy people who became jobless
in the division due to COVID-19 spread globally and in the country.
Under the government assistance programme, 200 tonnes of rice and Taka
two-lakh have been allocated for each of the eight districts in the division
to distribute 10 kg rice with other food items among each of the 20,000 needy
and jobless people in every district, they said.
Besides, 165 tonnes of rice has been allocated for Rangpur City Corporation
(RpCC) to distribute among the 16,500 needy and jobless families of all 33
wards in the city with 10 kg each, said its Chief Executive Officer Ruhul
Amin Mian.
District Relief and Rehabilitation Officer (DRRO) of Rangpur ATM
Akhteruzzaman said the government has allocated 200 metric tonnes of rice and
Taka two-lakh for distribution among the people who became jobless in the
district.
“Government’s allocation strengthened our capacity and added to the
previously buffer stocks of general relief rice, enabling us to implement the
purpose for reaching the doorsteps of the needy and jobless people,” he said.
The district administration has already allocated 180 tonnes of rice in
favour of all eight upazila administrations for distribution among 18,000
jobless families with 10 kg of rice each with the assistance of the local
union parishads.
“Besides, we have allocated three metric tonnes of rice for distribution
among jobless families of different Dalits and ethnic minority communities,
newspaper hawkers and other vulnerable and jobless people,” Akhteruzzaman
added.
Meanwhile, Rangpur Deputy Commissioner (DC) Md. Asib Ahsan distributed a
food package among 65 families residing at Bhawanipur Asrayan Prakalpa here
on Sunday afternoon.
“The DC distributed a sac containing 16.50 kg of foods, including 10 kg of
rice, one kg lentil, one kg iodized salt, one kg of sugar, two kg of
flattened rice, one litre of soya-bean oil and 500 gram of noodles among each
of the beneficiary families,” the DRRO said.
Nilphamari Deputy Commissioner Hafizur Rahman Chowdhury distributed
similar package of food among 33 ‘Bede’ community families of Natore district
as they became stranded in village Kanial Khata in Nilphamari Sadar upazila
on Sunday.
Kurigram DRRO Dilip Kumar Saha said, “After getting government
allocations, we have already allocated 196 metric tonnes of rice for 19,600
families and Taka 10.20-lakh for 3,400 needy families who recently became
jobless in all nine upazilas of the district.
Kurigram Sadar upazila Chairman Aman Uddin Ahmed Manju distributed food
package of 16.50 kg containing 10 kg of rice, one kg of lentils, one kg of
iodized salt, one kg of sugar, two kg of flattened rice, one litre of soya-
bean oil and 500 gram of noodles among each of the 300 families of the
upazila on Sunday.
Rangpur Regional Controller of Food Abdus Salam said 25,411 tonnes of rice
was sold with 30 kg to each of the 8.47-lakh poor families of Rangpur
division in March at Taka 10 per kg under the food friendly program through
1,473 appointed village ration dealers.
“The rice is being sold for five months – March, April, September, October
and November — annually since September, 2016,” he said.
“We are preparing to sell the rice for April from next week,” Salam said,
adding that the poor are being largely benefited getting the rice at Taka 10
per kg to tackle the situation caused by COVID-19 in the division.