The government has made preparation to face the possibility of the El Nino phenomenon occurring especially in ensuring that the food supply is not affected, said Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Datuk Tajuddin Abdul Rahman.

"In terms of rice supply, our padi areas have been provided with irrigation canals and for some padi planting areas, if the tube well is required, we will provide this facility so that the areas would not be affected.

"Hopefully padi and rice production won't be affected, and if they are affected, we now have a stockpile of about 45 days, but this can be increased to between four and six weeks depending on the quantity required," he said.

He disclosed this when replying to a question from Dr Mansor Abdul Rahman (BN-Sik) on the role and initiatives taken by the government in ensuring adequate supply of basic food items in case the El Nino phenomenon occurred in the country, at the Dewan Rakyat sitting here Tuesday.