Minister Wasantha Samarasinghe says that small and medium-scale mill owners can be provided with rice and take it from the Paddy Marketing Board warehouses.
However, he emphasizes that a kilo of rice should be provided at a reasonable price in that transaction. He points out that rice should be transported from Sathosa warehouses to retail stores, and that it costs more than Rs. 06 to transport a kilo of rice to Sathosa.
The Minister points out that Sathosa is a business, not a welfare work, and that it should be done with a competitive market.
The Minister says that large-scale mill owners are involved in racketeering in the rice market and that attempts to disrupt it will not be allowed when the government acts against it.
The Minister said this in response to allegations that conditions have been imposed in a way that prevents small and medium-scale rice mill owners from obtaining government rice.