BANGKOK, Dec 19 — Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha said Friday that the government would try to gradually release rice now stored at warehouses nationwide within three years.
Gen Prayut told journalists after chairing a meeting of the National Rice Policy Committee that the meeting discussed several issues including the massive amount of rice left at warehouses as a result of the previous government of prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra’s failed rice-pledging programme which was accused of large-scale corruption.
According to Gen Prayut, the total amount of rice now remaining in warehouses is 17.89 million tonnes which could be divided into three categories: 2.3 million tonnes of grade A, another 14.4 million tonnes not meeting the quality standards set by the Commerce Ministry,and 694,000 tonnes of Grade C or rotten grain.
He said about 390,000 tonnes of rice have disappeared from warehouses.
Initially, the government lost about Bt680 billion and it has to solve the rice problem on a sustainable basis in order to avoid similar losses in future, said Gen Prayut, adding that the government would try to make Thailand the world’s number one rice exporter again.
Reiterating that concerned government agencies would take legal action against those involved in the rice corruption scheme, Gen Prayut said further that Thailand would sign an MoU to sell two million tonnes of rice on a government-to-government basis during the current visit of his Chinese counterpart Li Keqiang.
Mr Li arrived in Bangkok early today to attend the two-day 5th Greater Mekong Subregion Summit.
In addition to that another MoU would be signed on constructing dual rail tracks in Thailand, Gen Prayut added.
