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Moreover, the programme has benefited mainly rice-millers and big-time farmers who have large stocks in warehouses, while small-scale farmers have been left out in the cold again.

The main reason why so few farmers have decided to pledge their paddies with the government, despite the good price of Bt14,000 per tonne being offered, is that most of their paddies would not qualify for the rice-pledging programme. For instance, the moisture content of much of their rice would be beyond the maximum level stipulated by the government. Besides, they would have to cooperate with millers in pledging paddies. Thus, most of them prefer just to sell their product directly to the millers.

Despite the Commerce Ministry's initial reluctance, Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej decided to initiate the rice-pledging programme on June 5. It was a knee-jerk reaction to farmers' threats to rally to protest the fluctuating domestic rice price.

The state-run Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives set aside a large amount of money to subsidise the rice price, but the money failed to reach the target group. Millers and large-scale farmers who have stockpiled rice, benefit not only from the subsidised paddy prices but also the increased benefits the government has provided to those who pledge rice under its programme. For instance, they would receive a higher transportation fee - going from Bt12 per kilometre up to Bt18 per kilometre - under the latest programme. The rice-polishing fee that the rice-millers receive also increased.

Therefore, the rice-pledging programme has proven to be an unnecessary project. The government should have used the money it has spent on this project to assist farmers to stand on their own over the long term. Otherwise, the programme may sound good in theory, but in reality, it's a waste of tax money.