Decision soon on fresh import of onion: minister
Any decision regarding onion imports will be taken considering the interests of both consumers and growers, said Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi.
A decision regarding fresh imports will be taken shortly, the commerce minister told reporters at his office yesterday.
Besides, consignments of onion for which letters of credit were issued earlier are now entering the country, he added.
The current import price of onion is about Tk 39 per kilogram.
Munshi's comments come at a time when the onion prices have dropped amid an increased supply of the cooking ingredient following the resumption of imports from India on Saturday.
Onions retailed for about Tk 30-40 per kg yesterday, down 33 per cent from Tk 45-60 a week ago, data from the Trading Corporation of Bangladesh shows.
India banned onion exports in mid-September 2020 to contain domestic prices. The ban was eventually removed at the end of last month.
The restriction on outgoing shipments led to a spiral in onion prices in Bangladesh as the country does not produce enough to meet its domestic requirements.
At present, the local onion supply falls 8-9 lakh tonnes short of the annual requirement, according to the commerce ministry.
Munshi said India decided to withdraw its ban on onion exports for its own convenience.
And this is why the government has taken various steps to attain self-sufficiency in onion production and come out of import dependence.
In three years, Bangladesh will be self-sufficient in this regard, he added,
The commerce minister also said that locally grown onions will hit the market in March.
"No dishonest traders will be allowed to take any opportunity as strict action is being taken against them. Import dependency on onion will no longer exist," he said.
In response to a query, the commerce minister said that potato prices had declined.
Meanwhile the price of edible oil rose in the international market and since it is an import dependent product, this has had a temporary effect on prices in Bangladesh.
However, the government is aware so that no one can increase the price of goods in a dishonest way, Munshi added.
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