He said this during the Cabinet briefing held at the Information Department today (28) in response to a question raised by a journalist regarding the increasing of rice prices.
He denied allegations that the government has given in to the so-called “Rice Mafia” by increasing the controlled price of rice from Rs 90 per kilo to 98.
The minister said that the higher price was fixed because “there were problems in practically applying it (the lower fixed price) in the market.
He said that this price adjustment was done to ensure that there would not be another rice shortage. In the event such a shortage would arise the black-marketers would get active and this measure was taken to prevent such a situation. However, he said that this does not signify the victory or defeat of the rice traders.
