The Bangladeshi interim government is planning to import 50,000 tonnes of rice from India in its bid to increase the country's food stock.

Finance Adviser Salehuddin Ahmed approved a proposal in this regard at a meeting of a government advisory committee on purchase at the Bangladesh Secretariat, reported The Daily Star.

The food ministry would import the rice through SAEL Agri Commodities Ltd, India at a cost of $471.6 per tonne, the newspaper reported.

The committee, earlier this month, had approved importing 50,000 tonnes of rice through the Indian enterprise Pattabhi Agro Foods Private Limited.

The import price was $477 per tonne at that time.

According to the food ministry data, the country had a stock of 12.36 lakh tonnes of food grains as of November 20, of which 8.08 lakh tonnes were rice, the Bangladeshi newspaper reported.

Overall, the government plans to initially import a total of 5 lakh tonnes of rice for this fiscal year of 2024-25 through government-to-government arrangements and open tenders, a food ministry told The Daily Star.

The amount of import may rise if prices in the market increase, he said.