Govt was compelled to hike fuel prices: Razzaque

Agriculture Minister Muhammad Abdur Razzaque has said that the government had no other choice and was compelled to increase the fuel prices.

“The government decided to keep the economy stable at a time when the global economy is in a volatile state,” he said while addressing a workshop, jointly organised by Bangladesh Rice Research Institute and Department of Agriculture Extension, in Cumilla on Sunday.

The minister, however, added that the fuel prices will be reduced if the rates in the international market go down.

Holding the Russia-Ukraine war responsible for the development, he said, “The world’s economy is passing a tumultuous situation because of this war. To fend off its impacts on Bangladesh, the government had to raise the fuel prices.”

“If the government subsidises more to bring in fuel, the country will face greater risk. So, from that point of view, the tariff hike decision is good. It will also be best to increase efficiency in fuel use. We can’t put the country at risk,” said Razzaque, also a Presidium member of the ruling Awami League.

He added the decision was taken to reduce the use of fuel oils and become more resilient so that Bangladesh does not face an economic crisis like the one in Sri Lanka. The government hiked the prices of fuel oils by a big margin on Friday and the new rates came into effect after Friday midnight.

Diesel price has now been increased by Tk 34 to Tk 114 per litre while octane price went up by Tk 46 to Tk 135 and petrol by Tk 44 to Tk 130 per litre. As a result, the agriculture sector is set to take a major hit as farmers will have to pay an additional Tk 3,300 crore to buy diesel for agriculture usage, mostly irrigation.

Costs of all types of agricultural produces will rise as the farmers’ irrigation and transport costs are set to go up, said producers and experts.