Onion price would not be reduced immediately

Staff Reporter :
Onion prices would not be reduced immediately due to inadequate supply in the local market.

A 40 per cent duty on overseas sales of onions slapped by India has started to impact the onion market as Bangladesh depends at least to some extent on the neighbouring country for the kitchen staple.

At Karwan Bazar, the largest commodity marketplace in the Bangladesh capital, onions from India were being sold at Tk 300-330 per 5 kg lot on Monday- a Tk 12 hike per kg in two days.

And the price of local onions has increased by Tk 15 to 20 per Kg at the retail level.

Mohammad Shiplu, who operates a retail outlet at Mirpur-11 in Dhaka, said he sold local onions for Tk 85 per kg on Saturday but it is now selling at Tk 100 on Monday.

The importers started to increase prices even before the arrival of the produces brought with the increased duty, said Hanif Mia, a trader of imported onions at Karwan Bazar.

Speculations that India will halt exporting onions have caused the hike, he said.

Talking about the volatility in the onion prices, Agriculture Minister Dr Abdur Razzaque on Monday said that the onion price would not be reduced immediately but the price will remain under the buying capacity of the consumers.

He also said that they have given import permission to the traders in a bid to increase onion supply in the local markets.

The minister came up with the remarks while talking to the journalists at his ministry on Monday.

Dr Razzaque further said, “We have taken two initiatives as an immediate decision in the current situation with onions in the market.

One of these is to increase imports from Egypt, China, Turkey and another is to increase market monitoring.”

“We have told the traders that since India has increased the export duty on onions, they can be imported from other countries.

The price of onion may be higher in the market, but it will not go beyond the purchasing power of the people,” he added.

“The Commerce Ministry is responsible for market monitoring and imports.

But we are doing the work involving with the Ministry.

Last year, the farmers did not get the price of onion as we could not increase the price for syndicate.

It is very difficult to break the syndicates.

If the supply is high, the price will fall.

That’s what we’re trying to do,” he said.

He further said, “The onion prices have increased in the local market due to the Indian decision.

We requested the country’s commerce minister to give facility in the case of onion like wheat.”

“We have to import from other countries to control the market.

Together with the Ministry of Commerce, we will try to control the market.

So that people of all levels can buy and eat,” Dr Razzaque added.