Shumi, a 34-year-old house help, works at four homes in the Lalmatia-Dhanmondi area. She has been a constant customer at Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) trucks since 2018.
She used to line up by the trucks between shifts at around 12 noon, but she has had to queue from dawn for the past three months as the trucks swiftly run out of products.
“It feels like a race now. I had to reschedule my work just to stand in the TCB queue. This month, I have been able to buy products only three times from the truck. Moreover, TCB has also increased the prices of sugar and lentils, which has affected poor people like us,” Shumi told Dhaka Tribune.
“Let me tell you a funny story. One of my employers works for an NGO. Last week, I saw her standing in line to buy daily commodities. It looked odd, a lady with such grace and nice clothing standing in the TCB line. But that’s a reality, I see many people like her in the queue nowadays.”
The price of almost every commodity has skyrocketed in the kitchen markets of the capital, making it almost impossible for the middle class and lower middle-class people to survive.
The government increased the price of soybean oil in the first week of February, raising it to Tk 168 per litre from Tk160. Furthermore, soybean oil is now only sold in five-litre bottles for Tk795 each.
Mahabuba Akter, a 55-year-old homemaker living in Hazaribagh, said: “The five-litre bottle has created havoc for my family. I have been buying two-litre bottles for my family of five so that I can split the remaining money among various other products.”
She added that she had been waiting for the price of chicken to drop, as it was currently being sold for Tk230 per kg.
Mahabuba further said she often had to go hunting for trucks in the New Market area, as the truck nearest to their home, in Jigatola, is usually sold out by the time she gets there.
Talim Hasan, a 29-year-old banker, said he usually shopped at stores near his home.
“I am newly married. Even six months ago, our monthly budget for groceries was around Tk 10,000. But for the past few months, it has exceeded Tk 15,000 and my wife has already started buying smaller portions. If prices keep rising, we will be joining the TCB line soon.”
On Monday, the government announced that it would rework the TCB subsidized food program ahead of Ramadan.
Usually, members of low- or middle-income families are able to purchase food at subsidized prices from TCB trucks under the program. Following the rework, only holders of Family Cards will be able to avail of the facility outside Dhaka and Barisal cities.
The cards will be provided by local deputy commissioners, upazila nirbahi officers (UNOs) and elected representatives, such as mayors and chairmen of city corporations, municipalities, and union parishads. About seven million people will be added to the existing three million on the TCB program list, and so a total 10 million people will be eligible to receive the food.
A total of 200 TCB trucks will sell food packages as usual at several points under Dhaka and Barisal City Corporations.
