Gopalganj Correspondent

Complaints have been received about the supply of unfit and low-quality VGF rice from a food warehouse in Kashiani, Gopalganj. On Thursday (March 20) morning, the rice supplied from the Bhatiapara food warehouse of the upazila was distributed among the poorest people of various wards in Sadar Union. This incident has caused extreme anger among the UP chairman, members, and beneficiaries. It is learned that on the occasion of the holy Eid-ul-Fitr, a total of 131 metric tons of VGF rice, 10 kg each, has been allocated to 13,175 extremely poor families in 14 unions of the upazila. Rice is supplied to 7 unions of the upazila from the Bhatiapara food warehouse. Most of the rice supplied from this food warehouse is old, stale and smelly. Beneficiaries expressed dissatisfaction with the low quality of rice they received. Many have sold the inedible rice after collecting it. On that morning, a field visit to the Bhatiapara Club Ground in Ward No. 8 of Sadar Union of the upazila showed that 10 kg of VGF rice was distributed among 144 VGF cardholders of that ward on the occasion of Eid-ul-Fitr. The rice supplied from the Bhatiapara food warehouse is very old, stale, and stinks. Beneficiaries expressed anger and protested after seeing the inedible rice. Nargis Begum, a VGF cardholder, expressed her anger and said, “The one who asked me to eat the rice is rotten. It smells so bad. Rice cannot be eaten raw. Someone is giving this rice to people.” “I want to feed the chickens and ducks at home.” There are allegations that traders who buy DO (Delivery Orders) for various government programs, including Kabikha and Kabita, bribe food warehouse officials and chieftains per ton and sell the good quality rice in the market. And the low-quality, inedible rice is provided to various programs allocated to the poor. Kashiani Sadar Union Parishad Chairman Mohammad Ali Khokon expressed his anger and said, “Very low-quality rice has been supplied from the food warehouse. The rice is unfit for human consumption.” People will not be able to eat. UNO sir himself has seen the matter. UNO sir has warned the food warehouse officer not to supply such rice in the future. Ward no. 8 UP member Md. Zakir Hossain said, ‘Very low-quality rice has been supplied from the Bhatiapara food warehouse. “Smelly, stinky rice. Poor people cannot eat this rice. They have to take it home and feed it to the chickens. This is very sad.” Bhatiapara Food Warehouse Officer-in-Charge (OCLSD) Mizanur Rahman Mridha denied the supply of low-quality rice and said, “I don’t understand the good or bad.” “We supplied the rice that was in the warehouse.” Kashiani Upazila Executive Officer (UNO) Farzana Jannat confirmed the incident and said, “The food warehouse officer has been warned.” “May such incidents not happen again in the future.”