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Flour at Subsidised Price

Consumers forced to pay higher

Sohel Parvez
The poor and low-income groups are forced to pay higher than the subsidised price of flour being sold on trucks as part of Open Market Sale (OMS) programme.
Besides, if anyone wants to buy a single item, either flour or rice, a number of dealers are compelling them to buy both.
Dealers were seen at Jatrabari in the city yesterday chargingTk 2 extra for flour against the subsidised price ofTk 22 per kilogram.
Men on two trucks - one at Dholairpar and another at Shamir Akhra - were also seen forcing the consumers to buy rice even if they came for flour.
No supervisor officer was found on the spot, although as per rules an officer was
supposed to oversee the OMS, a government scheme to provide cereals at lower price to the poor and fixed income groups.
"What should I do with flour if I do not need it? They say I will have to buy flour to get rice," said a frustrated Shilpi Akter, who was queueing behind an OMS truck at Kutubkhali.
Shilpi, who works at a small factor *n the locality and earns Tk 2,000 a month, came early to buy five kilogram of rice atTk 24 per kilogram. She knew the offer would save at leastTk 50 from her small income.
But she was asked to buy flour to get the rice. After a bargain in front of this correspondent, the salespersons agreed to sell her only rice.
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But everyone was not as lucky as she was.
Abdul Mannan wanted to buy 10 kilograms of rice. A salesman named Haider told him he needed to buy five kilograms of flour as well. When Mannan gave up, they charged him Tk 24 per kg instead ofTk 22 for the flour.
Aggrieved, Mannan demanded his money back. After a long negotiation Haider returned him Tk 5 instead ofTk 10.
This correspondent posing as a customer wanted to buy flour. Another salesperson demanded Tk 26 per kilogram. He claimed they had orders from the higher authorities to sell both the commodities together at higher rates.
Fazal Hossain, who claimed to be the dealer of another truck at Dholairpar, said the government had increased the price of flour byTk 2.
"We have been selling flour at Tk 24 for the
last six to seven months," he claimed. But customers present there trashed his claim.
Asked why they were selling both items together, Fazal said, "The government provides us with high quantity of rice and low quantity of flour. So, we need to sell both to make profit."
Sukumar Chandra Roy, chief controller of Dhaka rationing under the food ministry, said the dealers might have taken the opportunity of supervisors' "momentary" absence.
"Such incidents may occur in some cases. We usually conduct random visits and take action against such incidents," Sukumar said, claiming licence of 100 dealers had been cancelled for irregularities.
Director General of Food Ahmed Hossain Khan said such complaints were new to him. "It could be a stray incident. But we will look into the matter seriously," he said.