Salim Moshiur, Cumilla (South)

In the greater Laksam Upazila of the southern part of Cumilla, a big difference in the wholesale and retail prices of daily necessities and fires in the commodity market are being observed in various markets around the months of Ramadan and Falgun, and the market for various commodities has become unstable every day.

Those unscrupulous traders have become more and more reckless on various pretexts. People of all professions are being cheated by those traders. Due to the repeated mobile courts and dirty politics of the local administration, people from multiple organizations of the local administration have not been able to reduce the violence of those traders.

According to multiple local sources, the people of this region were affected by the last severe flood. On top of that, we have almost no income due to dirty politics after August 5. As a result, the responsible role of the local administration in this regard is very questionable. Rice in the markets. There is no alternative to market monitoring to reduce the prices of daily necessities including pulses, sugar, hot spices, and cooking oil, and the local administration should have strictly strengthened market monitoring and mobile courts. But that has not happened. Instead, a large part of our meager income is being looted to buy daily necessities in the market. Capitalizing on the bankruptcy of the local administration, local hoarding traders are strategically increasing the prices of daily necessities like an unbridled horse. However, no one has any headache in this regard. Especially around the ongoing Ramadan, the market for Ramadan products including channabut, pulses, and vesan is constantly increasing.

Several consumers in the southern part of the district said that the price of various products in the retail market is 15/20 taka higher than the price of various products in the wholesale market. In some cases, buyers have to pay 5/10 taka higher to buy essential products. Sugar is 120/130 taka in the wholesale market and 130/140 taka in the retail market, onions are 70/75 taka instead of 65/70 taka, and there is a difference of 10/15 taka per kg for each of the daily necessities. The market for seasonal fruits, raw vegetables, and hot spices is far beyond the purchasing power of the common man. No fresh vegetable is available for less than 50/60 taka. However, in different districts of the country, the price of raw materials is half of that at the place of production or at the place of production. By creating a crisis of cucumber, beans, tomatoes, and brinjal, along with other summer vegetables, the raw material traders have entered into an evil competition to increase the prices of summer vegetables in advance. On the other hand, on the day before the first Ramadan, cucumbers were sold at 60 taka, lemons at 80 taka, brinjals at 70 taka, and bananas at 100/120 taka.

The sources also said that yesterday, Sunday, the wholesale market for lentils was 110/115 taka and retail at 120/130 taka. Edible oil has increased by 40/50 taka per kg of various bands. Outside Laksam, Nangalkot and Barura municipalities, the prices of various commodities are being sold at a price of 15/20 taka per kg more than the wholesale price in the retail market. The difference in the wholesale and retail prices of daily necessities including rice, sugar and edible oil is up to 15/20 taka per kg as before. Although this is unusual for buyers, shopkeepers are in a good mood. The maximum price of various commodities in the market can be up to 2/5 taka per kg. But despite the abundant supply of goods in the markets, those traders are deceiving buyers by changing hands and taking advantage of commission trade by local commodity syndicate traders. There is also a fire in the market of hot spices, and the prices of groceries are increasing by leaps and bounds without any excuse. Although fish is somewhat under control, chicken, beef, and mutton are beyond the purchasing power of the common man. In addition, there are adulterated food products.

When asked about this in several phone calls to the local administration officials in the southern part of the district, they told about various problems including manpower shortage, but remained silent about controlling the market price of the product. Even then, although the allegations are partially true in some cases, they point the arrow of suspicion towards local businessmen and say something different.