The government has increased the price of edible oil yet again in compliance with the demands of importers. From Wednesday, buyers have been paying Tk 7 more per litre for bottled soybean oil. Consumers have to pay Tk 160 for a one-litre bottle of edible oil which was Tk 153 earlier. The price of a five-litre bottle of soybean oil has also gone up at the same rate. Earlier, the price of a five-litre bottle was Tk 728. That is Tk 760 now.
Edible oil prices have been raised seven times since last February on the pretext of rising prices in the international market, which is not only unusual, but unprecedented too. Last January, the price of bottled soybean was Tk 115, while in October it stood at Tk 160.
At a meeting held at the Commerce Ministry on Monday, a representative of the Bangladesh Consumer Association (CAB) questioned the rationale for raising the price of edible oil. The oil that is now in stock in the market is supposed to last for three months. So why will the price of edible oil be increased now on the pretext of the international market? Traders have argued that they have suffered a lot in pandemic. They will not be able to survive without reparation now.
Even if we assume that traders in corona have suffered some losses, we also need to know how much profit they have made. If edible oil for three months is already in stock, then there can be no scope to increase the prices. The price of newly imported oil can be increased after the stock runs out. Besides, traders import crude oil from abroad and refine it here. Although the price of oil has increased in the international market, the cost of refining has not increased.
Not only did edible oil prices rise during the corona period, prices of almost all daily commodities including rice have also gone up. According to the Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB), the price of rice has gone up by 6.78 per cent, brown flour by 13.5 per cent, white flour by 30 per cent, soybean oil by 49 per cent, palm oil by 52 per cent, sugar by 26 per cent, lentils by 29 per cent, garlic by 41 per cent and onions by 42 per cent in the last one year.
Now traders are trying to make up for the 'loss' caused by corona by increasing the price of edible oil in phases. But how will the consumer cope? Corona has reduced the income of most of them. On top of this, they have fallen into unbearable hardship due to the continuous rise in the prices of daily necessities.
The government has increased the price of edible oil in response to the demands of traders. But there is no one to look after the difficulties of the low-income people whose income has decreased during the pandemic.
We call on the government to ensure that the price of edible oil is not increased in any way before he three months of stock exhausts, as demanded by the CAB. Prices have already been increased seven times this year. Traders need to keep their promise not to raise prices in the near future.
At the same time, the government will have to increase the sale of essentials including rice, lentils, oil and sugar at fair prices through TCB. In that case, just as traders will not be able to raise prices uncontrollably, so people with limited income will be able to survive.