TCB to begin selling essentials Tuesday

The state-run Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) will start selling essential items across the country from Tuesday at a subsidised rate, reports news agency BSS.

Commerce minister Tipu Munshi will formally inaugurate the programme on Tuesday in the capital.

Around 10 million people from across the country would be able to buy essential items in phases with family cards.

In this phase, people would be able to purchase two litres of soybean oil at Tk 110 per liter, two kgs of lentils at Tk 65 per kg, one kg of sugar for Tk 55 and two kgs of onions at Tk 20 per kg at a time. However, onion will be sold only at city corporation areas and in districts where there are regional offices of TCB.

Talking to BSS, commerce ministry’s senior secretary Tapan Kanti Ghosh said that the selling of TCB products across the country this time would start on Tuesday and will continue till 14 August.

“Some 10 million people this time will be able to buy TCB products and hopefully there will be no disruption,” he added.

TCB officials said the consumers would be able to buy TCB products from selected distributors across the country, but the sales won’t begin at the same date at every place.

TCB will start distributing essential items after preparing the list of the distributors with the support of the concerned city corporation, district and upazila administration.

The TCB officials said the corporation would not sell essential items this time through trucks rather from shops of the distributors or from their designated places through family cards.

“TCB normally sells products covering almost 3-4 million people, but this year we have started the programme with a target to reach at least one crore families at the grass root level,” said TCB chairman Brigadier General M Ariful Hasan.

In Dhaka city, the programme will be conducted through the two city corporations, said the TCB chairman, adding that almost 1.25 million families in the capital will get to purchase TCB products.

The products will be sold in every ward under two city corporations through dealers.

Apart from this, the country-wide selling programme including all metropolitan cities excluding the capital, districts, upazilas and union will start from Tuesday and it will continue till 14 August.