SANGSAD BHABAN, June 29, 2024 (BSS) - Opposition leader in the parliament Golam Muhammad Quader today urged the government to introduce rationing system immediately for the lower income people to supply daily commodities regularly in fair price.
 
"We are proposing to the government to introduce rationing system immediately for the middle, lower middle and poor people aiming to provide essentials in fair price for next one year", said the opposition lawmaker while participating in a budget discussion for FY2024-25 at the JatiyaSangsad here with Speaker Dr Shirin SharminChaudhury in the chair.
 
Taking part in the discussion, the opposition leader said the proposed budget has given importance to the infrastructure sector and given less importance to the agriculture and social security while the country's eighth-five year plan has given importance to the social security sector.

Terming the budget as a weapon of killing poor, GM Quader, who also Chairman of Jatiya Party, said the proposed budget will not bring any benefit to the poor. "We have to help the poor for their surviving and that's why rationing system should to be introduced immediately for next one year considering the current commodity price inflation," said the JP Chairman.
 
The opposition leader said although the proposed budget has reduced commodity import tax from 3 per cent to one per cent which is very insignificant and this initiative will benefit the traders not the consumers.

In the proposed budget, he said the allocation on agricultural incentives has been reduced by 40.1percent, agriculture ministry's allocation reduced by 22.3 percent, allocation for the food distribution under the Open Market Sale(OMS) also has been reduced by 29.5 percent and it is less compare to the last year.

At the same time, the allocation for the food subsidy has been reduced by 19.4 per cent from the earlier allocation of Taka 3631 crore, he said, adding, "So, how the budget will help the poor people who will be benefitted from the proposed budget".

On June 6, Finance Minister Abul Hassan Mahmood Ali unveiled a Taka 7,97,000 crore national budget for 2024-25 fiscal setting the GDP growth target at 6.8 percent amid an economic meltdown across the world due to ongoing Ukraine-Russia war and Hamas-Israel-Palestine conflict.

"The proposed 53rd budget titled "March towards Smart Bangladesh Following the Path of Sustainable Development" which is only 4.6 percent bigger than that of the current fiscal year.

Earlier, the lawmaker paid cordial tributes to the memory of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, four national leaders, martyred Freedom Fighters and also those who made their utmost sacrifices during the War of Liberation and all subsequent democratic movements in the country.