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Down to Earth

Shopkeepers’ whims

By Khalilur Rahman
Disparity in prices of essentials in the city’s fish-cum-vegetable markets has baffled the consumers for quite a long time. Any buyer visiting any such market will be surprised to see that the prices of most of the items sharply vary from shop to shop though the quality and size of those and the source of their supply are the same.
Take the case of the most popular vegetable, onion which now sells at Taka 11 per kilogram (kg) tn MouMbazar but at Taka 14 to 16 in Captan Bazar. New Market. Gulshan market and Fakirapool 'Bazar
It is more interesting to note that one kg of onions in one shop at New Market is selling at Taka 14 and the same quality item Just in the adjacent shop sells at Taka 16.
Both the shops have received the supply of the commodity from the wholesale market at MouMbazar. And the MouMbazar market has also sold the same product to the groceries in New Market at the same price.
When the shopkeeper is asked about the disparity in the price that prevails in two adjacent shops the reply often relates to the higher rate of procurement or higher charge of transportation But on close scrutiny it will be found that the cost of transportation of the commodities from the wholesale market to the retail shops at New Market by rickshaw vans, push carts or rickshaws seldom varies.
So the discrepancy in price reflects nothing but the sellers’ unreasonable attitude to make more profit.
Garlic which is widely known to have beneficial effect on the cardiac muscles at times can cause ’heart trouble’
Last month the price of the Item suddenly shot up to Taka 70 per kg from Taka 48 to Taka 50. There was no short supply nor any other reason for such abnormal price hike. Still there was rise in price which persisted for over a fortnight.
Then the price fell to its present rate at Taka 45 to Taka 32 depending on size and quality. The price of multi-cell garlic is Taka 32 while the single-cell is Taka 45 per kg. But this is not the problem to the buyers.
A survey on four retail markets at Gulshan. New Market. Motilvibazar and Fakirapool Thursday showed that both varieties of garlic having the same quality and size are selling at Taka 56 (single-cell) to Taka 30 (multi-cell) per kg in all those places. The price of the item is, of course, the highest tn Gulshan market.
The price of salt like many other essentials of life has shot up after the devastating cyclone and tidal bore that hit the coastal belt of Bangladesh on April 29 last.
The price for a kg of salt at Gulshan market was Taka 12 on the day. But in a few shops at the same market salt was selling at Taka 10 to Taka 11 There was no variation in quality.
In Fakirapool the price of the item was Taka eight to Taka nine and in MouMbazar — Taka seven.
The destruction of salt beds by the cyclone and tidal surge has caused the price hike, the traders said.
The price of soyabean oil has recorded a sharp rise in the city market during the last fortnight. Two weeks ago the price of four-kg soyabean oil In plastic container produced by
the Dhaka Vegetable Oil Indus tries, and enterprise In the public sector, was Taka 135. The price now varies from Taka 145 to Taka 148
At New Market the price was Taka 145 in one shop while in another shop in the same market tt was sold at Taka 148 per 4-kg packet. There was no explanation for the disparity from the sellers.
In almost all the city markets fish is in short supply. This has resulted in higher prices of all the varieties of fish on sale. A medium-size hilsha was selling at Taka 70 at Fakirapool. The price was not more than Tk 50 three weeks ago. Shing’ and Magur which used to dominate the fish market are now scanty In all the places. As a result the ven dors are charging too high price for both these varieties of fish having high demand among the buyers.
In most cases doctors prescribe these two types of fish to the patients at convalescence stage.
Such is the case with chicken. Per pair of mediumsize chickens is now selling at Taka 130 to Taka 140. While the price was only Taka 110 to Taka 115 per pair of the same size in the last week of April.
The price of mutton and beef varies from market to market. At Qaptan Bazar and Fakirapool, the price of a kg of mutton is Taka 85 to Taka 90 and beef, Taka 50 while mutton sells at Taka 100 per kg in New Market and beef at Taka 60.
A disgusted buyer at Kawranbazar told me that previously the price of essentials showed changes In a month or two but nowadays the changes Taka place every hour.