Mansur Alam Khokon, Santhia (Pabna): A mobile court in Pabna’s Santhia upazila fined a fertilizer trader Tk 50,000 for selling DAP fertilizer at a higher price than the government-fixed rate.
The drive took place at Dhulairi Bazar on Monday (November 3, 2025). The court, led by Executive Magistrate and Santhia Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Riju Tamanna, fined Messrs Bhai Bhai Enterprise for selling DAP fertilizer bags at Tk 1,550 instead of the official rate of Tk 1,050 — and for operating without a dealer’s license.
UNO Riju Tamanna said she received complaints from local farmers that fertilizer prices were abnormally high in almost all shops at the market. “I sent one of my staff to buy a bag of DAP fertilizer and found it was being sold Tk 500 higher than the fixed rate. I immediately went to the market with my mobile team,” she said.
“On seeing us, most fertilizer traders closed their shops and fled,” the UNO added. “We called in the trader from whom the fertilizer was purchased for verification. It turned out he was not a licensed dealer and had illegally stocked around 100 bags.”
He claimed he bought the fertilizer from a local dealer at Tk 1,440 per bag and was selling it at Tk 1,550 for profit. The trader was fined Tk 50,000 and warned not to repeat such illegal activities.
Meanwhile, locals have raised questions about the role of the Upazila Agriculture Extension Officer and union-level sub-assistants, asking why they failed to monitor fertilizer prices and prevent such irregularities.
