NEWS reports said market interventions by the state-run Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) have made little impact in escalating prices of essentials in the kitchen market during the Eid-ul-Azha festival. Economists have rightly blamed TCB’s late initiative and then inefficient marketing drive and misuse of hefty subsidies. It has totally failed to provide the desired relief to consumers during the market volatilities on the occasion.
Prior to Eid when onion prices skyrocketed, market intervention by TCB took place only after the prices began to fall. To add insult to injury, onions imported by TCB were also of lower quality. Data shows that TCB received Tk 66.9 crore in subsidies from the government in 2013-14, Tk 58.6 crore in 2012-13, Tk 77.75 crore in 2011-12 and Tk 69 crore in 2010-11. From April 2014 to March 2015, TCB incurred losses on gram, date, lentil, sugar, soybean and palm oil supplies trying to stabilize the market. During that period, TCB also imported 4,483 tonnes of sugar for Tk 35.70 crore but sold it for Tk 19.71 crore. Similarly, it sold 529 tonnes of locally produced sugar at a loss of Tk 2.3 crore. The Commerce Secretary informed that due to procedural problems, shortage of manpower, warehouse facilities and funds, TCB can’t take prompt decisions for timely market interventions through imports, according to reports.
Time and again it has proved that the state-run organization does not have the leadership and the capacity to make timely market intervention to influence the market to pull down escalating prices of essentials. It is getting crores of taka allocation annually to use in subsidizing products. But it is failing every time raising question about time sensitiveness as to when it should plan the procurement and when the shipment may reach the country and how to sell. In most occasions, the shipment reaches late and imported merchandise remained unsold. Much of it later become rotten as TCB fails to sell them and their higher import price often left them to be dumped.
It appears the organization has become party irrelevant and also too expensive to be helpful to the nation. Out of the numerous reasons behind TCBs inefficiency, one is inherent corruption; which has been raging uncontrolled over the years. Inefficient officers often work in the organization who don’t have the right aptitude or the right leadership to prove their usefulness to the nation.
As it stands it is nothing but a draining burden and many believe that there must be a new move to reorganize the body or the government must plan altogether new intervention strategy to serve people when surging prices hit the market. There is nothing permanent and TCB must go for rigorous reform to prove its usefulness to the nation. Mere wasting of money is not justified.
