#Title

2 govt wings discouraging onion import to protect local farmers
Sohel Parvez and Kongkon Karmaker
..................................................................
With Indian onion starting to reenter Bangladesh after a six-month export ban, two government wings are up for discouraging the arrival of the tuber to protect local growers from price slumps amidst ongoing harvests.
The agriculture ministry recently requested the commerce ministry to discourage the import of the popular item, consumed as a spice and vegetable.
Meanwhile, the Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission (BTTC) suggested imposing regulatory duty of up to 35 per cent to make imports costly, according to a recent report obtained from the commerce ministry.
“We have already requested to discourage imports,” said Agriculture Secretary Md Nasiruzzaman over the phone.
The agriculture ministry is also not issuing fresh import permits from its plant quarantine office as part of its strategy to ensure fair prices for farmers, he said.
An importer has to get permits prior to opening letters of credit, according to Md Azhar Ali, director of Plant Quarantine Wing under the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE).
Current imports are taking place based on permits the ministry had issued earlier to tackle shortages in the domestic market, Nasiruzzaman said.
The recommendations coincide with the arrival of fresh harvests at the markets, which, along with the lifting of the ban, has resulted in a slump in prices, traders said.
India imposed the ban on September 29 last year, causing the prices of the key cooking ingredient to skyrocket to a historic high of Tk 250 per kilogramme (kg) on this side of the border.
Bangladesh imports roughly 10 lakh tonnes of onion a year, mainly from India.
Imports resumed yesterday with over 2,100 tonnes of the bulb crossing through three land ports -- Benapole, Bhomra and Hili.
The majority, 1,938 tonnes, entered through the Bhomra land port in the southwest border district of Satkhira, said customs officials and importers.
“Farmers are harvesting onion and import of onion at this moment will affect them and they will feel discouraged to produce the bulb next season,” said Narayan Saha, an onion wholesaler at Shyambazar, one of Dhaka’s biggest wholesale markets.
He said production has been good this year and it would reduce import requirement.
Retail prices of onion in Dhaka
in recent months
Lowest
Highest
Tk 40 /kg
Tk 60 /kg
Tk 110 /kgTk 70 /kg
Tk 120 /kgTk 70 /kg
Tk 60/ kg
Tk 140 /kg
Dec’19
Jan’20
Feb’20
Mar’20
read more on b3