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Raihan said, given the overall situation, the government should have expanded food distribution and continued subsidised sales through TCB trucks.

“It is surprising that this has not been done,” he said.

Food ministry data show that distribution under the FWP programme dipped 63.20 percent year-on-year to 59,736 tonnes as of May 8 in FY25.

Under the VGF programme, distribution fell 11.56 percent to 1.53 lakh tonnes. In the case of the VGD programme, food distribution slumped 40.26 percent year-on-year to 1.87 lakh tonnes.

Mustafa K Mujeri, executive director of the Institute for Inclusive Finance and Development, said the amount of subsidised food an individual can now purchase does not significantly contribute to their household’s food security.

In this context, reduced distribution — and in some cases, suspension of distribution to a large number of cardholders — is quite alarming, he said.

Amid high inflation, people living near the poverty line are now at risk of falling into poverty, while those already poor have become even poorer, he added.

Therefore, both the distribution and sales of subsidised food should be increased, he said.

Food Adviser Ali Imam Majumder said the distribution of 150,000 tonnes of rice and wheat by the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs is currently stalled. Despite repeated reminders, they have failed to carry out the distribution, he said.

Had that been distributed, the total amount would have been much higher, he added.

The Daily Star also tried to contact Sharmin Shahin, deputy director of the VWB at the Department of Women Affairs, but she did not respond.

Under the VGF programme, food is usually distributed to flood-affected areas. Additionally, during the two Eids, around 200,000 tonnes of food are distributed, he said.

Of that, 100,000 tonnes for Eid-ul-Azha have yet to be distributed. Hopefully, it will be dispatched within the next two to three days, he added.

Besides, the Food Friendly Programme, which previously operated for five months a year, will be extended to six months starting from the next fiscal year, he said.

The interim government plans to raise its food subsidy allocation by nearly 12 percent to Tk 8,100 crore in the upcoming fiscal year, aiming to expand food distribution programmes and offer greater support to low-income groups.