Rajshahi City Corporation to provide food support to 1 lakh people

Rajshahi City Corporation has planned to extend its food support to around one lakh people of the city who have become unemployed during the 10-day shutdown to avoid spread of coronavirus.

The food support would be collected from the city's affluent persons who are willing to donate, Rajshahi Mayor AHM Khairuzzaman said in the afternoon.

He was speaking while giving away 3,700 packages of food items among 37 ward level Awami League leaders for distribution among the poor at Rajshahi Nagar Bhaban today.

Each of the packages carry five kg rice, two kg potatoes, one kg pulse, and a soap, he said.

He said the city corporation has received donations and completed distribution of 100 tonnes of rice among 20,000 people in the first phase beginning on March 27.

The city corporation would distribute food support among 50,000 people in the second phase and 30,000 people in the last phase.

"The city has more than one lakh of population who are vulnerable to the crisis, we will support most of them," he said.

He said the city has no detection of Covid-19 patients, though people are at risk.

In order to avoid spread of the disease, the corporation has distributed 20,000 masks, arranged hand washing at 27 points in the city and trained 300 health workers, arranging PPE for cleaning staff and spraying disinfectants house to house, he said.