Selangor prepared to intervene to stabilise rice supply

SHAH ALAM - The state government will work together with the Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Ministry to gain information on the rice supply status in Selangor.

Selangor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari said the state government, through the Selangor Agriculture Development Corporation (PKPS), was prepared to intervene if the situation was worrying.

He said measures would be taken to overcome the rice supply issue until the problem was solved.

"In the early stages, there are several locations for the Beras Ehsan sale by PKPS.

"If the situation is critical, the state government will use the Ehsan Rakyat Tour (JER) to help individuals deal with the rice shortage," he said when commenting on the lack of rice in the market.

He was met at the launch ceremony of KDEB Waste Management’s new compactor truck and new corporate image on Wednesday.

Amirudin said the state government was restructuring all JER programmes to be coordinated under the Rahmah Sales ministerial programme.

"While heading in that direction, the state government will focus on rice supply, as the initiative will benefit the Selangor public.

"Just as I mentioned previously, the intervention is a temporary measure that couldn’t be sustained, and its purpose was to stabilise the supply," he said.

JER was introduced by the state government to overcome the issue of the rising cost of goods in the post-Covid-19 pandemic by offering prices of basic goods such as rice, oil, and eggs at 30 per cent cheaper than the market.

The state government has prepared an allocation of RM20 million to continue the JER 2.0 series, compared to RM12 million last year.