15,000 litres of edible oil seized

The government continues its intensive crackdown on unscrupulous traders who are directly or indirectly involved in the illegal hoarding of large quantities of edible oil in a bid to alleviate the ongoing crisis in the edible oil market across the country.

The Directorate of National Consumer Rights Protection (DNCRP) had undertaken the drive in the wake of the acute soybean oil crisis in the local market during the month of Ramadan.

In the past three days, the authorities have seized more than 18,000 litres of stockpiled soybean oil from three places in Chattogram.

The hoarders intended to sell oil at an increased price later, according to the directorate.

On Monday, the DNCRP seized around 15,000 litres of cooking oil stockpiled in a shop in Chattogram’s Pahartali.

“Acting on a tip-off, we discovered the 15,000 litres of soybean oil in Siraj Saudagar’s shop,” said Md Foez Ullah, deputy director of the DNCRP in Chattogram.

Earlier on Sunday, the directorate recovered 1,500 litres of soybean oil from the storage of a retail shop at Karnaphuli Market.

The local administration also found 2,328 litres of soybean oil stashed away in the home of a grocer in Fatikchhari on Saturday, according to media reports.

“When large quantities of oil are found in one place at a time, the factory owners concerned are being investigated to see if they had any involvements,” Foez Ullah added.

For weeks now, the authorities concerned have been stepping up surveillance at the factory level in the wake of the soybean oil crisis, but the situation has yet to be resolved.

At one point, the government considered the practice of supplying oil to retailers directly from the mill but later reversed the decision based on specific information about the possibility of further manipulation in the new process.