Farmers queue at govt banks on first day of rice payments
Subsidy scheme transferring up to 10,000 baht per household to 4.3 million farmers this week, under govt budget of 37 billion
Farmers in 17 northern provinces were the first to receive payments of 1,000 baht per rai under the government’s new rice subsidy scheme on Monday.
Deputy Finance Minister Julapun Amornvivat presided over the ceremony to launch the subsidy scheme, targeting 4.3 million farmers across the country.
The Cabinet resolved earlier this month to pay the 1,000-baht subsidy on a maximum 10 rai per household after the rice price dropped below 10,000 baht per tonne.
The payments will be made in five rounds via the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives (BAAC) under a government budget of 37.414 billion baht.
Julapun said the scheme aimed to ease cost-of-living pressure on farmers while motivating them to improve their rice quality.
Payments will be made this week as follows:
- Monday: 7.320 billion baht transferred to 957,000 families in 17 northern provinces.
- Tuesday: 2.69 billion baht transferred to 296,000 families in 19 central and eastern provinces.
- Wednesday: 10.8 billion baht transferred to 1.37 million families in 12 upper northeastern provinces.
- Thursday: 11.822 billion baht transferred to 1.4 million families in 8 lower northeastern provinces.
- Friday: 1.303 billion baht transferred to 156,000 families in 22 western and southern provinces.
On Monday morning, farmers in Uthai Thani and several other northern provinces queued at BAAC branches to withdraw subsidy payments from ATMs and across the counter.
Most confirmed the 10,000-baht payment had been transferred to their account.
