The government will buy 1.10 crore liters of soybean oil and 8,000 tonnes of lentils for the state marketing organization, Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB), on the occasion of the upcoming Ramadan.
The approval came from the meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Government Purchase (CCGP) held on Wednesday with Agriculture Minister Dr Abdur Razzque in the chair.
At the meeting, a total of 15 proposals including separate proposals for buying soybean oil and lentils were approved.
Briefing reporters after the meeting virtually, Cabinet Division Additional Secretary Sayeed Mahbub Khan said that soybean oil and lentils will be bought in the open system at the estimated cost of Tk 194.56 crore.
The price of oil per liter will be Tk 176.88, which was 22 paisa less than the previous time amounting to Tk 177. Meghna Edible Oil Refinery will supply the oil.
He also said that the proposal to buy 8,000 tons of lentils for TCB worth Tk 73.29 crore had been approved during the meeting.
The lentils were purchased from a local agent of a company in Turkey, he said, adding that the price per kg has been fixed at Tk 91.60.
When asked whether any plan has been taken to reduce the prices of products supplied by TCB in view of Ramadan, Commerce Minister
Tipu Munshi said there is no opportunity to reduce the price of the products supplied by TCB.
We have been buying products for TCB every month, he said, adding that now we are buying a little more products ahead of Ramadan.
The Commerce Minister advised relying on domestic fruits for the time being to meet the needs of consumers.
However, the month of Ramadan will begin in the last week of March. During fasting, the demand for fish and meat, oil, sugar and fruits usually increases.
Traders have been complaining that there is a problem in the import of fruits as imports are controlled for the dollar crisis.