Expressing grave concern with the skyrocketing price of onion, commerce ministry officials have said there is no apparent reason for the abnormal hike at the peak of the harvest season.
Commerce Secretary Mahbub Ahmed told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday that a section of “crooked” businessmen had been hoarding onion, resulting in the excruciating price. “We will try to stop the game of raising onion prices,” he said.
He also said the ministry officials were likely to sit in a meeting today to find out about the actual situation on the ground.
The ministry would send letters to the deputy commissioners, asking them to monitor the supply chain and demand pattern of the essential commodity, the commerce secretary said.
Market surveys suggest that as of yesterday, onion was selling at Tk140 per kilogram in the capital. Last week, the price was Tk100.
Last month the home ministry, upon requests from traders, arranged for police protection for onion-laden trucks coming from Cox’s Bazar during hartals. However, the businessmen have not put forward any request in recent times, the commerce secretary said.
Commerce ministry sources said the businessmen had not made any request off late because the police personnel had not been able to protect themselves while discharging duty. Neither have they dispatched enough onions to meet the demand in the country.
Sources also said although the commerce ministry had asked the home ministry and directed the district administration and the government offices concerned to ensure security for the onion-laden trucks during hartals, in reality, these instructions had hardly ever been followed.
According to a UNDP report, disruption in supply chain during hartals has resulted in 12% rise in the price of essentials.
Data released last week by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics showed that food inflation rose to a seven-month high 8.55% on a point-to-point basis in November. The hike was attributed to the spiralling prices of essentials because of the disruption in supply chain caused by the ongoing political turmoil.
