The Department of Special Investigation (DSI) has been asked to investigate abuse of the rice-pledging scheme further after receiving a report from the Commerce Ministry that there were instances of cheats colluding with farmers and millers for gains, according to the ministry's Internal Trade Department.

The rice-pledging circumvention, wherein farmers reported rice output more than they actually produced and smuggled in the balance to gain benefits from the pledging scheme, has led to losses for the government. For example, farmers having an output of only 10 tonnes per crop report 20 tonnes. The balance is smuggled in from other countries.

The investigation follows complaints received by the ministry recently via its hotline 1569 that farmers in Kanchanaburi had colluded with rice millers to take advantage of loopholes in the pledging programme. The farmers claimed that their output was more than that on the government's survey list.

According to the pledging scheme, each farmer is allowed to pledge up to 30-40 tonnes per crop, but not more than Bt500,000 in value.

Vatchari Vimooktayon, director-general of the Internal Trade Department, said yesterday that the government would conduct an investigation into the rice-pledging circumvention.

She said that if the DSI finds that farmers or millers have breached the law and cheated on the pledging scheme, they will be permanently blacklisted, and prohibited from joining the next pledging project.

Vatchari refused to give any details of the farmers who were petitioned for cheating under the rice-pledging scheme, saying that an investigation is under way.

To prevent circumvention, she said the ministry would cooperate with local officials to closely inspect farmers' rice outputs sought for the pledging.

Meanwhile, the ministry will today call for a meeting with swine traders to tackle the high retail price of pork, while pig farmers are getting lower returns.

The National Swine Committee recently instructed the ministry to restructure the price of swine after farmers continued to face losses, but the price of retail pork is still high.

Source: The Nation