A potential shortage of Nadu and Kekulu rice varieties during the upcoming festive season is a growing concern, according to the Marandagahamula Small and Medium Scale Rice Millers' Association.

The Association's Chairman, B.K. Ranjith highlighted these risks as supply pressures continue to impact the local market.

In a simultaneous move to encourage production, the Cabinet of Ministers decided yesterday to revise the minimum purchasing prices for premium paddy.

The price for one kilogram of Samba paddy will increase from Rs. 125 to Rs. 130, while Keeri Samba will see an adjustment from Rs. 132 to Rs. 140.

It has emerged that Rebeca and Laura filed a legal complaint on 5 January against Iglesias for sexual assault and human trafficking before the national court, which investigates crimes allegedly committed beyond Spain's borders.

An old friend of Iglesias, Jaime Peñafiel, labelled the accusations "absolute lies".

Another ally, the journalist Miguel Ángel Pastor, said he had never heard "any suggestion that he might have committed this kind of act".

However, the equality minister in Spain's Socialist-led government, Ana Redondo, said she hoped the case would be investigated "all the way".

"When there is no consent there is assault," she posted on social media.

Ione Belarra, leader of the far-left Podemos party, called for an end to "the silence" in cases of sexual assault by "famous assailants who are protected by their money".

Last month, a woman filed a legal complaint alleging that Adolfo Suárez, a former prime minister who was revered for his role during Spain's transition to democracy, had sexually abused her from when she was 17 years old.

Suárez, a conservative, died in 2014 and police are investigating. Jesús Villegas, a magistrate, said that the case against Suárez was unlikely to flourish and that it was politically motivated.

The president of the Madrid region, the conservative Isabel Díaz Ayuso, has come out in support of the Spanish singer.

"The Madrid region will never contribute to the vilifying of artists and even less so to that of the most universal of all singers: Julio Iglesias," she posted on social media.

Iglesias's biographer Ignacio Peyró and the author's publishing house, Libros del Asteroide, have also responded, saying they will update last year's biography to include the allegations. They have also expressed their "support and solidarity for the victims".

-BBC