Sylhet, July 7 (V7N)- The flood situation across the greater Sylhet district is now abnormal. The pressure on essential commodities from the distressed people has led to an increase in onion prices within 5 days after the rise in rice prices. The onion market is unstable. Over the past eight to ten days, the price has risen to Tk 120 per kilogram. Onions are also being sold at higher prices in Sylhet city's main wholesale market, Kalighat.
 
This impact has also been felt in the retail market, touching both Sylhet city and the rural areas with a touch of instability. However, traders are assuring the public about initiatives to import onions to curb this sudden price spike. They are saying that letters of credit (LCs) have been opened to import onions from several countries as an alternative to India. The imported onions might enter the market by the end of this month, potentially reducing the prices significantly. Traders attribute the price hike in Sylhet to the flood.
 
Despite the traders’ optimistic words about onions, the statements from officials of the Ministry of Commerce and the Department of Agricultural Marketing do not indicate any positive steps to improve the market situation. Instead, they advise each other to speak and some evade responsibility by claiming to be on leave. According to the Department of Agricultural Marketing, the logical retail price of onions should be Tk 65 per kilogram considering production and other costs. However, their data shows that last Thursday (July 4), the retail price of onions ranged from Tk 95 to 105. The actual market scenario is different.
 
On Sunday (July 7), in several markets of the capital such as Bandar Bazar, Mirabazar, Subidbazar, Ambarkhana, Kadamtali, Uposhohor, and Chouhatta, high-quality local onions were being sold for Tk 110 to 120  per kilogram. The price of local hybrid onions ranged from Tk 105 to 110 per kilogram. However, in smaller neighborhood markets, onions were not available for less than Tk 120 per kilogram.
According to the market price data from the Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB), local and imported onions in Sylhet were sold for Tk 100 to 110 per kilogram.
 
The TCB reports that over the past month, the price of local onions increased by 27% and imported onions by 17%. However, the increase is much higher over the past year. According to the TCB, over the past year, the price of local onions has risen by 40% and imported onions by 133%.
 
END/AHR/SMA/