Bogra Sangbad Desk : The apex court today ordered a stop on further distribution of the wheat imported from Brazil in the backdrop of questions regarding its quality.
The remaining wheat will not be distributed to any organisation or department until further order of the Supreme Court.
Furthermore, the four-member Appellate Division bench extended a stay on a High Court verdict that ordered government to take back Brazil wheat from an organisation if it is willing to return it.
The bench, headed by Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha, came up with the order during a hearing on a petition moved by the government seeking a stay on the High Court order.
Attorney General Mahbubey Alam told the court that the government will move a leave-to-appeal petition against the HC verdict after receiving its full verdict – which is yet to be released.
On July 8, moved by a writ petition, the High Court delivered the verdict also asking the government not to force anyone to accept the imported wheat if he is unwilling to do so.
The very next day, the government moved the apex court with an appeal and the Chamber Judge of the Appellate Division stayed the high court verdict till July 26 (today).
Media reports alleged that two lakh tonnes of substandard wheat were imported from Brazil recently.
Following the reports, The Bangladesh Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (BCSIR) last month found the imported Brazilian wheat substandard, raising questions about the results of the tests carried out by the food ministry.
The wheat was supplied by two contractors -- the Netherlands-based Glencore Grain and Singapore-based Olam International -- at a cost of $46 million or Tk 355 crore and 90 percent of the payment had been made, said food ministry officials.
Two contractors -- Glencore Grain and Olam International -- supplied the grains to the food directorate earlier this year.
Glencore had supplied 1.5 lakh tonnes and Olam 50,000 tonnes.
The government said the Brazilian wheat was accepted after tests found that the grain met the specifications of the contract.
Insiders said the wheat was accepted although the suppliers failed to provide the crops' year certificate and the Certificate of Standard and Quality of Wheat, issued either by Brazil's agriculture ministry or chamber of commerce.
The suppliers provided certificates issued by a pre-shipment inspection company -- SGS, said Ilahi Dad Khan, procurement director of the Directorate General of Food.
Sources said the quality of the wheat was not good enough but the food directorate accepted the cereal as it fulfilled the contract specification.
The wheat was used in the government's various safety net schemes, such as the Food for Work and the Open Market Sales, and as rations given out to law enforcement agencies.
The police administration later complained of low quality grains, prompting the food ministry to collect samples from district warehouses for testing.
Source : The Daily Star
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