Onions from India have started arriving in the country through land ports on the border as the government announced resumption of onion import after over two months of restriction, reports UNB.
The agriculture ministry took the decision to allow importing onions on Sunday considering the unusual price hike.
Two trucks loaded with 40 metric tonnes of Indian onions entered through Hili land port in Dinajpur at 5:45 pm on Monday.
Shahidul Islam, an importer, said, “There has been a shortage of imported onions in the country since mid-March. As a result, the price of local onions skyrocketed in both retail and wholesale markets after Eid-ul-Fitr.”
“In this situation, importers have been demanding that the government allow them to import onions from India, to keep the price stable. Keeping the traders and consumers in mind, the Ministry of Agriculture has given permission to import onions from India on Sunday,” he said.
Although the imported onions are yet to reach the market, prices have already started to go down as the news broke.
Moinul Haque, a retail trader at Hili Bazar, said onions were being sold at Tk 80 per kg this evening – Tk 5 less compared to this morning.
“We may see a fall in onion prices in the coming days,” he said.
Meanwhile, 57 onion-carrying trucks from India have entered the country through Sonamasjid land port in Chapainawabganj.
Prabhat Kumar Singh, assistant commissioner of customs at Sonamasjid land port, said the trucks carrying 1,097 metric tonnes of onions have entered Bangladesh.
“Trucks are allowed to enter the port only after receiving IP approved documents,” he said.
The government stopped importing onions from India from March 16 this year to ensure fair prices for onions produced by local farmers.
