[ad_1]
After two weeks of crisis, the government and traders finally reached an agreement on potato prices. The potatoes will be sold at a maximum retail price of Tk 35 per kg on the market from Wednesday. The decision was made at a meeting of traders and government representatives on the price of the product on Tuesday.
The government’s agricultural marketing department has already written to the deputy commissioners to monitor whether the potatoes are being sold in the market at the prices set by the government. In addition, Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) will sell potatoes on the open market at 25 Tk / kg in the capital from today.
Dewan Ashraf Hossain, director of the agricultural marketing department, said: “We have done a lot of research on potatoes. The above price was set accordingly. But when they (the merchants) stopped supplying potatoes to the market, I sat down in a meeting with them. There we made our declaration. Traders have also spoken. The new price has been set with the consent of both parties. We immediately informed the Deputy Commissioner of this price and sent him a letter. Since the new price has been set in the presence and consent of the representatives of the traders, there is no possibility of exceeding this price.
He said the price would be effective as of Wednesday. “Vendors in Shyambazar-Karwan Bazar have told the media and us that they don’t have potatoes,” he said. Retailers also carry small quantities of potatoes. Super stores may have more potatoes. But that amount is also small. So the new price is effective as of tomorrow. In this case, no excuse will work. If someone does not accept this price, the administration will take action.
Suddenly, the price of potatoes went up in the market earlier this month. The product, which was sold at Rs 35 per kg, started selling at Rs 55-60 on the market. To control the situation, the Agricultural Marketing Department set the price at 23 Tk in cold rooms, 25 Tk wholesale and 30 Tk retail on 8 October. That same night a letter was sent to the deputy commissioners to implement this price. At the same time, they began to investigate the reasons for the increase in potato prices. The department found that the country currently has a surplus of potatoes in demand. However, cold room owners are selling the product at a higher price.
Even after fixing the price of potatoes, cold store owners and traders did not reduce the price. In addition, it was decided to sell potatoes at 25 Tk / kg through the government marketing agency TCB. The crisis culminated when storekeepers and cold room owners stopped supplying potatoes to the market since last Monday. The meeting was attended by representatives of the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Commerce, the Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission, the National Department of Consumer Rights Protection and representatives of various traders’ organizations. It was decided that the potatoes would be sold at 28 Tk / kg in cold storage, 30 Tk at wholesale and 35 Tk / kg at retail. The district administration and the government consumer protection department will be on the ground to implement this price.
Furthermore, as announced by Trade Minister Tipu Munshi on October 16, TCB will sell potatoes on the open market starting today. At the rate of 25 Tk per kg, a buyer can buy a maximum of 2 kg of potatoes per day. However, for now, the product will be sold only in the capital. In addition to potatoes, these trucks will also sell onions, soybean oil, sugar and lentils.
[ad_2]
