STAR BUSINESS REPORT

The Trading Corporation of Bangladesh will purchase 8,000 tonnes of lentils and 1.1 crore litres of soybean oil ahead of Ramadan, the month of fasting for Muslims scheduled to begin in late March.

The cabinet committee on government purchase yesterday approved proposals at a meeting presided over by Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal.

The lentils will be purchased from Export Trading Bd, Dhaka, a local agent of Indian company ETC Agro Processing Pvt, which was selected through an open tender method.

At a briefing after the meeting, Additional Secretary Sayeed Mahbub Khan of the cabinet division said each kilogramme of lentils would cost Tk 92.46, which was previously bought at Tk 101.97.

Besides, the TCB will purchase the soybean oil from local supplier Shun Shing Edible Oil under a direct purchase method at a cost of Tk 182 per litre.

The committee also awarded a package under a Dhaka-Sylhet highway project to a joint venture of Chinese company HEGO and Bangladeshi company Mir Akhter at a cost of Tk 1,055.20 crore.

Moreover, Noorani Construction was awarded with a project to construct nine residential buildings for members of police in Dhaka city at a cost of Tk 23.20 crore.