Staff Reporter :
The prices of vegetables are on the rise as incessant monsoon rain and rising floodwater damaged cropland in different districts.
For example, the green chilli was selling at between Tk 100 and 120 per kg at different city markets yesterday, up from Tk 80 a week ago.
Prices of brinjal, okra, pointed gourd, ridge gourd and leafy vegetables like red amaranth have also soared.
Brinjal of different qualities was selling at Tk 50 – 65 a kg, an increase by Tk 10-15 from a week ago. However, a few retailers were asking Tk 60 and above for a kg of brinjal on the ground of offering better quality.
Retailers blamed supply shortages for the price hike.
Apart from vegetables, prices of rice, onion and salt also went up over the last one month.
“The rainfall and flooding in northern districts are to blame for the spike in veg prices,” said Abdul Hakim, a vegetable retailer at Karwan Bazar kitchen market.
Afjal Hossain, another vegetable retailer at the market, was found asking Tk 50 for each kg of pointed gourd.
He said prices of green chilli had been rising for the last three to four days due to poor supply. Afjal last week bought each kg of green chilli at Tk 60 -70 from Karwan Bazar wholesale market. He claimed to have purchased it at Tk 90 per kg yesterday.
“The prices of fresh produces fluctuate depending on supply. Prices of green chilli have risen due to excessive rainfall in the country,” said wholesaler Ferdous Ahmed who was offering customers vegetable at Tk 50 a kg.
According to data from the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE), floodwaters in 10 northern districts have inundated crops, including vegetables, paddy and jute, on more than 9,000 hectares of land.
A senior DAE official said vegetable plants would be affected the most. “Plants would die if they remained submerged for a couple of days. This might affect vegetable production,” he noted.
Abdul Kader, a vegetable wholesaler at Karwan Bazar, said prices of vegetables usually remained high in the rainy season compared to those in other seasons of the year due to flooding.
