Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi has said that people have to be patient for a month for the price of onions to come down. “We have already taken all kinds of measures to import 5 lakh tonnes of onions from alternative sources including Turkey, Netherlands and China to ease onion crisis," the Minister made the remarks while briefing the press at the Commerce Ministry's conference room on Wednesday (September 18) on the stock, supply and price of onion.
Meanwhile, India has banned exporting onions to Bangladesh thereby doubling the price of onions in a day to 100 taka per kg in the country's kitchen markets. In this situation, the government will import onions from Turkey through the Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) to bring the market under control.
Tipu Munshi said the onions would be sold at lower prices through TCB as well as local e-commerce companies due to manpower crisis of the corporation. However, the Commerce Minister did not mention the selling price of onion per kg but hoped to sell at least 10 to 12 thousand tonnes of onions per month if sold through e-commerce companies. He also said, "We have already found stocks of 5 to 6 lakh tonnes of onions in different parts of the country. The government will have to import another four lakh tonnes of onions till the emergence of new onions, he added.
Meanwhile, TCB has opened an LC for importing onions from Turkey. We have decided to import 1 lakh tonnes of onions through TCB by next February. Tipu Munshi said, "TCB never imports more than 10,000 to 12,000 Metric Tonnes of onions in a year. TCB has been selling two thousand to three thousand tonnes of onions since the last three or four months.
"This time we have decided to bring 30 to 40 thousand tonnes of onions through TCB for open market sale. As soon as India banned onion exports, we think we will import one lakh tonnes of onions through TCB," he said.
"Last time we distributed onions imported by TCB through DCs. This time these initiatives have been taken by the Commerce Ministry," he said.
The Minister said, “We have started talking to giant business groups for importing onions." He further said “Meghna, City and S Alam groups collaborated onion import last year and have promised to cooperate again this time.
Meanwhile, the Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) has been selling onions at 30 taka per kg since last Sunday due to instability in the onion market. A buyer can buy a maximum of 2 kg of onions from a TCB truck.
"We have to endure a month of hardship," the minister added and said that arrangements are being made to allow onions stuck at the border to enter within a day or two. He further said to have increased the term of imprisonments and amount of fines to punish dishonest traders.
"A total of 12 to 13 hundred tonnes of onions have been loaded from Myanmar which will arrive within a few days. We have to be affordable for a month to complete the supply chain in place," he said.
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