Govt launches Bharat rice at subsidised rate of Rs 29 per kilogram

The government on Tuesday launched 'Bharat rice' at a subsidised rate of Rs 29 per kilogram to provide relief to consumers amid a 15 per cent rise in retail prices of the grain in the last one year.

Launching the subsidised rice that will be available in 5 kg and 10 kg packs, Food and Consumer Affairs Minister Piyush Goyal said the government is making efforts to ensure that daily food items are available at affordable rates for the common people.

The government on Tuesday launched 'Bharat rice' at a subsidised rate of Rs 29 per kilogramme to provide relief to consumers following a 15 per cent  increase in retail prices of the grain in the previous year.

Food and Consumer Affairs Minister Piyush Goyal launched the subsidised rice, which will be available in 5 kg and 10 kg packs, and stated that the government is working to make daily food items more affordable to the general public. "When the wholesale intervention (to control prices) was not benefitting more people, the retail intervention was started under the Price Stabilisation Fund (PSF)," Goyal said.

As part of the retail intervention, rice will be sold at Rs 29 per kg under the 'Bharat brand' to help middle-class and poor consumers, he said.

Each kilogramme of 'Bharat rice' will contain 5 per cent broken rice.

Goyal stated that the government's efforts have already contributed to the rapid reduction of tomato and onion prices.

"Wheat inflation has been zero in the last six months since we started selling 'Bharat atta'. The same impact we will see in rice," the minister said. 

He also launched 100 mobile vans to sell 'Bharat rice' and distributed 5 kg packs to five beneficiaries.

In the first phase, the Food Corporation of India (FCI) will provide 5 lakh tonnes of rice to two cooperatives, the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd (NAFED) and the National Cooperative Consumers' Federation of India (NCCF), as well as the retail chain Kendriya Bhandar.

These agencies will then pack the rice in 5 kg and 10 kg bags and sell it through their stores under the 'Bharat' brand. The rice will also be sold via e-commerce platforms.

(With Agency Inputs)