Commerce Secretary Md. Zafar Uddin on Monday claimed that legal steps have been taken against 2,500 dishonest businessmen for manipulating onion market. He also assured that the onion market will soon become stable with the effective measures taken by the government.
“On behalf of the government, I want to assure people that the price of onion will come down soon following the government’s pragmatic steps,” he told journalists at the Secretariat. Onion prices started rising after India banned its export in late September. The price of this essential commodity in fact hit the ceiling as it sold for Tk 250 per kg. Commerce Secretary also claimed that onion price increased as Myanmar hiked export price. He also held Cyclone ‘Bulbul’ partially responsible for the onion’s price hike.
He said the government has asked businessmen to import onions from other countries. “A huge amount of onion is being brought via sea,” he said. Initiatives have been taken to import onions from Egypt, Turkey, and China via air cargo following the directives of the Prime Minister, he added.
Meanwhile, cargo planes carrying the first consignment of onion from abroad will hopefully reach the country on Tuesday, said Zafar. “The local variety of onion has already reached the market in different districts. The activities of state-owned Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) have been strengthened to tackle the situation,” he said.
