Prices of essentials going up in Port City

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Chittagong Bureau :
The prices of essentials particularly the price of onion is increasing alarmingly just after Ramadan. The prices of the essentials especially vegetables, eggs, green chilly; cucumber witnessed a sharp rise at port city’s kitchen markets after the Eid using the cause of Eid vacation and continuous raining.
Sources said, the road communication with Rangamati and Bander-ban is disrupted due to landslide and monsoon rain.
The supply of the essentials particularly vegetables, onion and others are also being disrupted. As a result, the sellers are hiking more price than the previous days now telling that there is shortage of supply.
According to sources, the local administration, lawmakers, mayor and authorities concerned have taken steps to control the price hike in the holy month of Ramadan.
As a result, the price hike of essentials was controlled in the holy month of Ramadan. But, after the Eid, using cause of the Eid-vacation, landslide, rough weather and continuous monsoon rain, the retail traders are hiking the prices of essentials since last weeks.
Sources said, the price of onion hiked Tk 30 per kg in the last two days in the retail markets in Chittagong. The price of onions was Tk 45 per kg in Ramadan. But, suddenly, the retail traders increased the price of onion Tk 25 to 30 per kg in last two days.
As a result, the retail traders are selling onion at 75 per kg. While visiting different kitchen markets of the port city including Kazir Dewri Market, Karnaphuli Complex, Bahardarhat and Chawkbazaar this correspondent found that a kilogram of green chilly was selling at Tk 200-210 which was Tk 160 to 170 several days before while per kilogram cucumber was selling at Tk 60 to 70 which was Tk 40 to 45 and beef was selling Tk 700 to 750 (per kilogram) which was Tk 600 to 650 earlier.
Mohammed Sekandar, a whole seller of Khatoongonj said, “We have onions. But, some traders are hiking price without any reason.
As they bought the onions in Ramadan at low price and stocked in godown. Later, they are selling the onion at high price hearing the news of stopping import of onion from India recently.”
The retailers claimed that they are selling green chilly and cucumber according to the change in its prices in the wholesale markets.
“We’ve nothing to do. We fix the prices of essentials according to the wholesale prices. The wholesale price of green chilly was Tk150 for per kilogram on Thursday but its wholesale price increased to Tk 190 this morning,” a vegetable retailer of city’s Kazir Dewri kitchen market told journalists.
When asked Abul Kalam, a retailer of city’s Karnaphuli Complex, said, “We’re not making huge profit but selling essentials with two or three Tk higher for per kilogram than the wholesale prices.” Sources said, some of the importers of essential commodities and general merchants have started opening fair-price outlets for the common people in the port city.
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