State Minister for Commerce Ahsanul Islam Titu on Thursday said the prices of products in super shops, where price is fixed, are offered at a relatively cheaper rate than kitchen markets.
The state minister during a press briefing held at the secretariat addressing Consumer Rights Day on Thursday.
He said: “Super shops offer special incentives. They also offer fixed prices for every Ramadan product.”
Mentioning that protecting people’s interest is given utmost interest, he said: “The price of the product is written in the fixed price shops. When someone goes to the kitchen market, he has to bargain.”
The state minister said he wants kitchen markets to sell products at a lower price than super shops. “They (kitchen market traders) don’t have to bear the cost of air conditioner.”
Advocating for standardization in pricing, Titu said: “Every wholesale market in Dhaka is under our surveillance. Wholesalers should be brought under a regulation. They should give the vouchers for what price they gave to the retailer or to the retailer.”
He said: "We are trying to develop a software for monitoring the supply chain. We will inaugurate it tomorrow. We can monitor our supply chain, from where to how products are going.”
The state minister addressed the price discrepancies between farmers' earnings and urban market rates, particularly concerning eggplant prices.
The state minister also said that his ministry is also collaborating with the Ministry of Agriculture to bolster marketing regulations and protect consumers' interests.
