The government has been making desperate efforts to keep the commodity supply chain uninterrupted during hartals, as more such political programmes of the 18-party alliance are feared in coming weeks.
Disruption in supply of essentials to the markets had heavily affected the consumer-level prices during the 84-hour hartal that ended Wednesday and also during the two spells of 60-hour hartals in the previous weeks.
Such prolonged hartals would push consumer prices beyond means of fixed-income people, commerce ministry officials expressed fears.
An official, seeking anonymity, said the image of the commerce ministry might be tarnished because of the price hike of essentials.
The image of Commerce Minister GM Quader, who is a Jatiya Party lawmaker, was also facing trouble as his brother Jatiya Party chief HM Ershad decided not to go with the present government and its election mood, another official preferring anonymity said.
The commerce ministry has already requested the home ministry, Bangladesh Police and Dhaka Metropolitan Police authorities to provide security to the trucks which carry the essential commodities.
Sources in commerce ministry said GM Quader even talked to the home minister and several district commissioners a couple of times during the last three days, regarding keeping alive the supply chain of essentials.
The ministry’s Deputy Secretary Sadar Ali Bishwas sent a letter on Wednesday to the district commissioner and police superintendent of Cox’s Bazar to provide security to trucks carrying essential commodities from Teknaf land port and Chittagong port.
Saying the trucks, especially the ones with imported onion from Myanmar and Chittagong port, needed police protection, the letter stated that the domestic market prices of essentials and supply situation relied on the normal transportation of the commodities across the country.
Meanwhile on Sunday, Trading Corporation of Bangladesh Director Md Ramjan Ali issued a letter to the open market sale dealers and the DMP to ensure smooth operation of the truck-based sale at 25 points of Dhaka city.
The letter stated that the TCB’s sale of sugar, lentil, soybean oil, and onion, which began on November 2 would continue till November 21.
The DMP, however, has agreed to give protection to only three OMS spots because of shortage in police personnel, sources in the commerce ministry said.
Commerce Secretary Mahbub Ahmed resumed the TCB’s OMS programme during hartals, following demand from the ordinary consumers, sources said.
Low- and middle-income people and office-goers were seen standing in long queue during hartal hours to buy essential kitchen items from TCB trucks. Price chart shows a significant difference with market prices of essentials like onion, soyabean oil, sugar and lentil.
Sources in the ministry further informed that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina also asked her cabinet members, senior officials and different government agencies to take cautionary measures as the political impasse had been affecting economic growth.
Shamsul Alam, member of the General Economic Division, said the country’s farmers or producers and consumers were hit hard by the shutdowns.
The prices of essentials decline in the rural areas where the commodities were produced, while in the urban areas their prices rose due to disruption in the transportation, he pointed out.
Apart from passenger vehicles, goods-laded trucks and covered vans were also vandalized and set ablaze during hartals, scaring transport owners and workers away from highways.
The commerce secretary on Thursday said the administration would take up vigorous steps to ensure transportation safety during political volatility. “If required, the government will arrange police and BGB escorts for transportation,” he told the Dhaka Tribune.
But arrangements for transporting export-oriented apparels by road from Dhaka to Chittagong port under police protection got poor response as exporters did not dare to send goods by road during hartals, BGMEA sources said. On Monday night, 24 container trucks were booked, but only seven of them left Dhaka for Chittagong with police escort.
A Narayanganj-based salt trader said he was struggling to get a truck to ship his salt to northern region as transport owners and workers were not willing to take risk during hartals.
“No owner is ready to put a Tk6 million vehicle at stake for a few thousand taka, not to speak about security of lives of drivers and helpers, who are not being spared now-a-days,” he reasoned.
Few long-haul trucks dared to transport goods during hartals, but charged much higher than usual, adding to the costs of commodities including fresh vegetables and fish.
Chittagong Chamber President Mahabubul Alam said transportation cost for each kilogram of goods rose at least by Tk 2, which ultimately passes on to consumers.
Traders also had to pay extra fare for both import and export goods.
Monir Ahmed, president of Inter-district Truck Owners’ Association of Chittagong told the Dhaka Tribune that fare of a container lorry was Tk 60,000 on Wednesday, the last day of 84-hour hartal, which was Tk 30,000 a couple of weeks ago.
According to a UNDP report, prices of essentials increase by 12% because of the disruption in supply chain during the shutdown.