KUALA LUMPUR: The Monsoon Season Aid has helped many smallholders and rubber tappers to pull through difficult times, the Dewan Rakyat was told on Wednesday.
Plantation Industries and Commodities Deputy Minister Datuk Datu Nasrun Datu Mansur said 264,352 smallholders and rubber tappers have started to receive the much-needed relief in the form of a RM200 monthly aid which will be handed out in November, December and January.
The three-month period is related to the northeast monsoon season, known in Malay as musim tengkujuh.
The period will bring heavy rain and can lead to flash floods in many areas, severely affecting the income of rubber smallholders and tappers.
"A total of 499,802 smallholders and rubber tappers have registered for the assistance, including 235,450 applications which are still being processed.
"The registration is carried out via online applications and through the village head or chairman of the Village Development and Security Committee (JKKK)," he said in reply to Budiman Mohd Zohdi (BN-Sungai Besar), who inquired on the number of eligible smallholders and rubber tappers who are to receive the Rainy Season Assistance.
Datu Nasrun added that the government has no immediate plans to provide or introduce other forms of assistance to smallholders and rubber tappers during the monsoon season.
The Monsoon Season Aid, a first-of-its-kind measure, was announced by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak during the 2017 Budget speech with a total allocation of RM261 million from the federal government.
The aid application can be made online via http://bmt.lgm.gov.my.
Rubber smallholders and tappers can also visit the nearest Malaysian Rubber Board office to obtain the forms for manual application method.
Reports by ARFA YUNUS, BEATRICE NITA JAY and FERNANDO FONG