During the ousted Awami League government’s tenure, there were widespread allegations that a large share of government procurement was carried out through rice millers. Political influence was also used in preparing farmers’ lists and allocating quotas, and small farmers were excluded over the moisture content and other quality requirements for paddy. During the former interim government’s tenure, there were demands for paddy to be procured directly from farmers. But farmers also raised complaints about government paddy procurement during that period.
Even during the first Boro season under the current BNP government, there have still been allegations in some areas that farmers are being forced to sell paddy at lower prices, dissatisfaction over the government’s procurement price, and the dominance of politically influential individuals and middlemen.
The government procures both paddy and rice, but farmers mainly have the opportunity to sell paddy, whereas relatively little paddy is procured. Contracts with rice millers account for a large share of the rice supplied to the government. Consequently, instead of the benefits of government-set prices going directly to farmers, there is scope for them to be passed on to the next level of the supply chain. Due to procedural complexities, small farmers in many cases sell their paddy locally despite having the opportunity to earn more by selling to the government.
There are 16.88 million (16,881,757) farm households in the country, while only 1.06 million farmers are registered for paddy procurement at government warehouses. Meanwhile, 6,301 rice mills are registered.
Agricultural economist Dr Jahangir Alam told Bonik Barta: “Our paddy and rice procurement policy itself is flawed. The government buys very little paddy, while around 80 percent of its procurement is rice. Rice millers supply the rice, and farmers have no opportunity to supply it. In many cases, politically influential people at the local level only get the opportunity to supply paddy. The actual farmers don’t receive the benefits.”
On what needs to be done to ensure that farmers benefit from government procurement, he said: “If the government’s objective in procuring paddy and rice is to benefit farmers, it must buy directly from them. The volume of procurement also needs to be increased. At least 10–20 percent of total production should be procured. Otherwise, farmers won’t benefit.”
To participate in government paddy and rice procurement, farmers have to register using their mobile phone number and National Identity Card through the ‘Krishoker App’ or the Directorate General of Food’s website. After the registration is approved by the local agricultural officer, farmers can apply to sell their paddy. Following verification of the applications, farmers are selected through a lottery. Those selected are given the opportunity to supply paddy according to a specified quota.
Agricultural economists say the government could make the digital process more effective to simplify and improve transparency in paddy and rice procurement. In this regard, it could follow the e-Paddy programme of India’s neighbouring West Bengal state or the Philippine model.
Professor AHM Saiful Islam of the Department of Agricultural Economics at Bangladesh Agricultural University (BAU) told Bonik Barta: “Compared with the volume of rice imported into the country, the amount of paddy and rice purchased from local producers is much lower. There are allegations of various irregularities even in this process. Instead of farmers supplying directly, middlemen often supply the paddy and rice in collusion with some unscrupulous officials.”
He further said, “There’s also the moisture requirement and the red tape involved. Farmers know they could make more profit by selling to the government, but they sell their produce in the open market to avoid the hassle of meeting various conditions. The process needs to be digitised. West Bengal’s e-Paddy programme could be a good example for us. Farmers may not understand digital systems, but many of their children are digitally skilled and can handle the online procedures for them.”
In 2019, the then Awami League government had set a target of procuring only 150,000 tonnes of paddy from farmers during the Boro season. But it had set a target of procuring 1.15 million tonnes of rice from rice millers, equivalent to around 2 million tonnes of paddy. At the time, media reports said millers were benefiting by buying paddy from farmers at lower prices and supplying rice to the government at higher prices. There were also reports that many people associated with Awami League politics in Rajshahi had been registered as farmers and sold paddy to government warehouses. That year, local Awami League leaders in Kushtia were accused of demanding a commission of BDT 2 per kilogramme from millers for government rice procurement.
A 2023 study found that small and medium-sized farmers remained relatively marginalised in the government’s paddy procurement system, while the procurement process tended to be controlled under the influence of local political elites.
Researchers found that factors such as farmers’ education, access to adequate information and procurement cards, residence near government procurement centres, and affiliation with political parties affect their likelihood of participating in government procurement programmes. The study also identified irregularities in farmer selection, excessive procurement of paddy, corruption and problems with the payment system.
But the problems are not limited to allegations of political influence. To supply paddy to government warehouses, farmers have to meet various requirements, including maintaining a specified moisture level and providing a National Identity Card and bank account. In 2019, the paddy of many marginal farmers was rejected because it did not meet the prescribed moisture limit. Later, middlemen bought paddy from farmers, dried it and attempted to sell it to government warehouses using the farmers’ procurement cards.
During the interim government’s tenure, farmers and other stakeholders raised concerns ahead of the 2025 Boro procurement season that millers benefited because the government traditionally purchased more rice than paddy. Their proposal was that the government should buy paddy directly from farmers and then have millers process the paddy for a fixed fee. This would retain the necessary role of millers while ensuring that the benefits of government procurement went directly to farmers. But the proposal was not implemented.
After the BNP government took office, farmers in Mymensingh, Meherpur, Jhenaidah, Jamalpur and several other districts reported irregularities in paddy procurement during the current Boro season. In one such case, a committee was formed at the upazila level in Rajarhat, Kurigram, to investigate allegations of irregularities.
The issue of various conditions and obstacles faced by farmers in paddy procurement has also emerged in research by the Food Planning and Monitoring Unit (FPMU). The study, titled “Government paddy procurement system in Bangladesh: Challenges and ways forward”, was published on the agency’s website in June last year. It identified several challenges, including fewer benefits offered at government paddy procurement centres than in private markets; stringent quality requirements, such as moisture levels and limits on damaged or immature paddy; inadequate facilities for drying and cleaning paddy; poor transport and road connectivity; the limited number of procurement centres and difficulties caused by their distance; and various complications in receiving payment for paddy sold to the government.
The study found that 18 percent of farmers who sold paddy to government warehouses reported irregularities, such as being charged for excess weight and being asked to pay hidden or unofficial costs.
The procurement target for paddy is also limited compared with the country’s production. During the current Boro season, the government set a target of producing 22.6 million tonnes of paddy. In contrast, the procurement target was 500,000 tonnes. The government has so far procured 578,140 tonnes of paddy after slightly increasing the target. In comparison, it has procured nearly 1.20 million tonnes of parboiled rice and 105,313 tonnes of non-parboiled rice.
Agriculture Minister Mohammed Aminur Rashid told Bonik Barta: “There are some technical issues involved in paddy procurement. When the government buys paddy, moisture is an issue because the government has no drying process. Another issue is that farmers try to sell their paddy as soon as they harvest it. They sometimes sell it while threshing it in the field. Many farmers don’t even try to sell their paddy to the government.”
Elaborating on plans for new initiatives to benefit farmers, he said: “We’re discussing a policy on whether paddy can be purchased one or two months after the harvest season. Farmers dry the paddy and store it in granaries. The moisture content of such paddy doesn’t exceed 14 percent. If the government can buy it at that time, both farmers and the government will benefit. The government doesn’t buy small quantities as traders do. That’s why we’re considering formulating such a policy. Under the policy, procurement will be announced in advance in a union or a large market area. Farmers will bring their paddy there, and the government will buy it directly. This is the plan. The current government is very sincere about benefiting farmers.”
A 2020 report by the Integrated Food Policy and Research Programme (IFPRP) said that only 1.34 percent of farmers had the opportunity to sell paddy to the government. At the time, the organisation advised the government to buy paddy and rice directly from farmers rather than from millers.
The FPMU research report also recommended several measures to make the paddy procurement system more effective and farmer-friendly. These include relaxing the acceptable standards for moisture and damaged or immature paddy by raising the permissible moisture level to 15–17 percent; simplifying the procurement process to make it similar to the private local market; installing paddy-drying machines at procurement centres; setting up temporary procurement centres; providing transport facilities or support for transport costs; expanding the use of digital platforms; simplifying the payment process; and setting government procurement prices in line with market prices.
Md Abdul Bari, state minister for the Ministry of Food, told Bonik Barta: “The target for paddy procurement this year was 500,000 tonnes. Small, medium and large farmers were able to sell from three sacks to three tonnes of paddy. In the past, the paddy procurement target was never fulfilled. This is the first time that the government has procured 550,000 tonnes of paddy even after meeting the target.”
He added: “The government procures paddy directly from farmers and rice from millers. This year, the target for procuring rice from millers was 1.2 million tonnes, and that target has been met. As we have further scope, the process of procuring an additional 200,000 tonnes of rice is underway. If we can procure it locally, we’ll need to reduce imports from abroad. This will save foreign currency. The procurement of paddy and rice is being carried out with 100 percent transparency.”