The labour ministry has failed to introduce fair price card for garment workers due to delay in approving a proposal by the finance ministry.This despite the fact that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had made the announcement during a visit to the ministry of labour and employment last year. After receiving a proposal from the labour ministry, the finance ministry asked it to identify the garment workers and take the opinion of the factory owners on the proposed fair price card, sources in the labour ministry said. The labour ministry sought subsidy to introduce the card for about 40 lakh apparel workers, 80 per cent of whom are women, the sources added. Under the fair price card, the labour ministry proposed to give rice at Tk. 24 per kg, flour at Tk. 22, edible oil at Tk. 55.50, sugar at Tk. 4 and lentil (masur dal) at Tk. 103 per kg to low-income workers of the export-oriented readymade garment factories. State minister for labour Mujibul Haque Chunnu told The Independent that the factory owners refused to provide fair price cards unless the government provided the required quantity of food grain. The state minister said they are planning to assess the quantity of food grain and other essentials required by a worker under the fair price card in a month. “We will also prepare a list of workers in the export-oriented garment factories for introducing the fair price card,” he added. Chunnu said they have held talks with the food ministry and it has asked them to send a “concrete proposal” to implement the government’s plan soon. The factory owners have accepted the fair price card system, but said it should be implemented under government management, he added.
