Metropolis Report-
Following the news that India had imposed a virtual export ban, traders started stockpiling onions, causing prices to rise by Tk 100 or more per kg overnight.
Indian authorities set a minimum export price of $800 per tonne for onions for the remainder of the year on October 28. For Bangladeshi traders, importing the necessary ingredients for cooking was nearly impossible due to the high cost.
New Delhi decided to keep the curb in place until the end of March on Friday.
Although the restriction is not new, Bangladeshi grocery and wholesale store owners attribute the abrupt price increase to India’s move.
Customers were taken aback by the nearly twofold increase, as rising costs for necessities have already made it more difficult for people to make ends meet.
A kilogram of onions sold for about Tk 240 at Chattogram’s Kazir Dewri market yesterday, up from Tk 140 the day before.
Although 133 businesses were fined by the Consumer Rights Directorate after raids on various kitchen markets across the nation, the initiative was not very successful.
Retailers at Karwan Bazar were requesting Tk 220 per kg at 8:15 p.m.
As India prohibited the export of onions in November 2019, onion prices rose to Tk 250.
Although 34 lakh tonnes of onions were produced by Bangladeshi farmers this year, the nation still needs to import 6–7 lakh tonnes to meet demand.
When India imposed a 40 percent export tax in August of this year, onion prices began to rise. Prices in Bangladesh increased even further when India raised the export price in October.
Onions cost between Tk 105 and Tk 125 in Dhaka a week ago.
The Consumers Association of Bangladesh’s president, Ghulam Rahman, declared, “The abrupt price increase makes no sense. There is no interruption in the supply. All traders want is to increase their profits.”
