The prices of onions have come down in the country’s markets despite India’s indefinite ban on the export of the vegetable.
Setting the prices of produces would not rein in the spiralling prices of essentials, said Commerce Secretary Tapan Kanti Ghosh yesterday.
India has extended its ban on onion exports indefinitely -- a surprise move that comes ahead of a general election.
Fruit sellers on Kemal Ataturk Road in Banani have been found selling guavas at Tk 200 per kg, whereas the usual price for guavas in Dhaka city is Tk 80 per kg
Though the government capped the prices of 29 food items a week ago, traders are still selling 26 of those at higher rates than fixed.
Despite a good supply of watermelons in Patuakhali markets, consumers are not able to buy the seasonal fruit due to high price. It is one of the most sought after fruits during Ramadan.
The price cap on 29 commodities exists on paper only as most of those items are being sold at prices higher than those fixed by the government.
Rice prices have gone up by Tk 1.5 to Tk 4 per kg in Dhaka markets over the last five days.
Business leaders yesterday expressed anger over extortion in the supply chain of commodities, pinning the nuisance as a major barrier to containing the prices of essentials.
Justice M Enayetur Rahim, a senior judge at the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court (SC), today instructed the media to make reports positively and carefully, saying that prices of products sometimes increase due to the role of media.
The government’s promise of containing the prices of essentials ahead of Ramadan seems to be only on paper as the prices of key items instead rose over the last month.
The industries ministry has backtracked on its decision to hike the price of sugar produced by state-run sugar mills.
The Bangladesh Poultry Association has blamed extortion on roads and syndicates for the recent price hike of eggs and chicken.
Though there is currently no supply crunch in the country, a section of unscrupulous importers and traders have already hiked the prices of essentials, creating an artificial crisis to make extra profits ahead of Ramadan, said a home ministry report.
Commerce minister, in parliament, says task force formed to regulate prices during Ramadan
Mohammad Shahid looked at the shopkeeper in Karwan Bazar in disbelief after hearing that a kg of onions was selling for Tk 120.
"We discussed the import of perishable items from India. We have discussed in detail so that we get 50,000 tonnes of onion and 1 lakh tonnes of sugar before Ramadan."
The National Board of Revenue yesterday cut customs tariffs on rice, sugar and dates and removed the value added tax on edible oil imports in an effort to help the government boost supply and contain prices of the four commodities during Ramadan next month.