Coordination cell to ensure fair prices

Informing that the government has taken special measures to keep the prices of daily commodities at a reasonable level, Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi on Sunday said a coordination cell will be formed soon to ensure products to consumers at reasonable prices.

The coordination cell will be formed to take proper measures regarding the import, supply, storage, and price of essential commodities and the government will provide all kinds of support to the cell, he said.

The coordination cell will ensure products to consumers at reasonable prices, he added.

In order to deal with the ongoing global situation, along with the government, businessmen and related parties have to play a responsible role. The government will do everything necessary so that the people of the country do not suffer, the minister said that

The minister said these things while presiding over the 8th meeting of the “Trade Support Advisory Committee” organised by the commerce ministry at the conference room of the ministry on Sunday.

Talking to reporters after the meeting, Tipu Munshi said everything was discussed in the meeting. In order to increase monitoring a coordination committee will be formed with certain guidelines.

Seller of sugar at higher prices will be jailed

Those who sell sugar at a higher price than the price fixed by the government will be sent to jail if necessary, he warned.

Tipu Munshi said the government is trying to ensure undisrupted supply of sugar by reducing regulatory duty on the item.   

He said, “It is true that the traders in the market are not angels. But the price we set is not what we have to pay. We determine what the price should be. Despite that, some traders have taken advantage of the situation creating artificial crisis.”

But our papers say there is a lot of sugar already in stock, also in the pipeline, he claimed.

He added that the government will take proper measures as well, so that the country’s people can get the essential commodities at fair prices across the year including Ramadan.

Bangladesh Bank has also taken special measures to ensure imports of the essential commodities uninterrupted, he said, adding that the traders will not face any difficulties to open L/C against the essential goods.

Edible oil to be subsidised

The commerce ministry has proposed to reduce customs duty on the Sunflower and Canola edible oil besides Soybean to increase imports.

Munshi stressed that government will do everything so that the country’s people would not face anomalies. Answering a question after meeting, Tipu said the sugar production will increase if the supply of gas is normalised and then the country will not face any difficulties.

Senior Commerce Secretary Tapan Kanti Ghosh conducted the meeting while senior officials of the commerce ministry, Bangladesh Bank, the National Board of Revenue and the representatives from the government departments and trade bodies expressed their views in the meeting.