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Prices of fish, edible oil and vegetables increased sharply in the past week, putting more pressure on the commoners.
Fish prices went up significantly. Traders said this happened because the supply of river fish dropped due to the government's current ban on catching small hilsa (jatka) as part of its conservation programme.
Kamal Hossain, a fish seller at Rayer Bazar, said the hilsa ban also affected the supply and prices of other river and farmed fish.
Cultured shrimp is now selling for Tk 800-1,100 per kg, while river shrimp costs Tk1,350-1,550. River ruhi and katla prices have reached Tk 700-1,200 per kg.
Prices of cultured pangas, koi, ruhi, and catla have also gone up by Tk 40-50 a kg.
Vegetable prices rose as well because heavy rain damaged crops in many districts, while farmers have started switching from summer to winter vegetables.
Brinjal now costs between Tk 120 and Tk 220 per kg. Cucumber, tomato, and local beans are selling for Tk 100-180 per kg.
"Rain and the seasonal shift have reduced the supply of vegetables," said Ariful Islam, a vegetable seller at Mohammadpur Krishi Market.
The edible oil market has also become unstable. After the government proposed setting the price of bottled soybean oil at Tk 190 per litre, many oil refiners reduced their supply to grocery stores.
As a result, many retailers are selling bottled soybean oil at Tk 200 per litre-Tk 10 higher than the proposed price.
Loose soybean and palm oil prices have also gone up by Tk 10-15 per litre. Loose soybean oil is now available at Tk 182-185, while palm oil sells for Tk 170-180 per litre.
This situation started after a disagreement between the government and refiners.
The Commerce Ministry allowed only a Tk 1 increase per litre, rejecting refiners' demand for a Tk 10 hike, even though global prices have gone up.
The decision followed a meeting on September 22 with top refiners including City Group, Meghna Group, TK Group, and Bangladesh Edible Oil Ltd-but no agreement was reached.
"Since that meeting, refiners have been holding back supply," said Monwar Hossain, a distributor at Kaptan Bazar. "I ordered oil two weeks ago but haven't received any yet."
Consumers Association of Bangladesh Secretary Humayun Kabir Bhuiyan said weak market monitoring has worsened the problem.
He called on the government to strengthen monitoring from farms to retail shops to stop artificial crises and protect consumer interests.
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