Home ›› 13 Aug 2021 ›› Back
The government banned jute trading without a licence to ensure adequate raw jute supply in the domestic market and thwart syndicates.
According to a notification issued by the Ministry of Textiles and Jute on Aug 9, traders cannot keep more than 1,000 maunds (37.32 kilograms) of jute in stock for over a month.
The notification came when farmers started harvesting jute. The government expects enough production against an annual demand of around 10 lakh tonnes.
District and upazila administrations will operate mobile courts to prevent traders from mixing sand and water with raw jute. Monitoring will continue to thwart syndicates and illegal trading.
“We thank the government for such initiatives that’ll help us survive in the competitive global market. This decision will deter syndicates. We are ready to pay the farmers fair prices,” Mohammed Mahbubur Rahman Patwari, chairman of Bangladesh Jute Mills Association, told The Business Post.
He said they requested the government to stop raw jute export till December. “We know it’s difficult to enforce, but the government should review this logical demand to protect the local industry,” he added.
A better price of raw jute, despite the closure of most of the state-owned jute mills and Covid-induced slowdown of economic activities, brought smiles to the growers across Bangladesh.
However, the vibrant raw jute market worried millers as they fear smuggling in the pretext of raw jute export and called for protective measures.
Jute growers were getting low prices for a long time, but the trend began changing in 2019. Millers said they purchased jute for Tk 1,500-1,600 per maund at the mill gates in 2015-16 and 2016-17 fiscals. The price was much lower at the merchant level.
This year, merchants are paying Tk 2,600-2,700 for a maund of raw jute. The Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) said producing a maund of raw jute costs between Tk 900 and Tk 1,100.
“This year’s heavy rainfall contributed to yield of very good quality fibres and we think that the farmers will earn better,” AKM Monirul Alam, a director of the DAE, told The Business Post.
In the previous year, supply crunch and active syndicates pushed up raw jute prices two-time higher compared to 2019. This time, most jute mills were closed due to the lack of availability of raw jute.
From the pre-season, exporters and millers urged the government to take initiatives to avert such situations.
They also demanded to ban raw jute export until December, until domestic millers fulfil their demand.
But the ministry has not taken any decision yet.
