TCB
TCB begins sales of essential items for low-income families
State-owned Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) Tuesday began selling essential items at fair prices for 1 crore low-income families across the country, marking the month of mourning.
Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi inaugurated the sales initiative in Dhaka's Mohammadpur area this morning.
"Some 10 million families across the country having cards will be able to buy the essential items in phases," Tipu said.
Read: Raise awareness about consumers’ rights: Tipu
He also warned of strict action against anyone found indulging in any irregularities in selling these essentials.
Each cardholder can buy 1kg of sugar at Tk 55, 2kg of lentils at Tk 65 per kg, two litres of soybean oil at Tk 110 per litre, and 2kg of onion at Tk 20 per kg.
Read: Bangladesh receives $2.09 billion remittance in July; highest in 14 months
This time, the corporation will not sell essential items on trucks rather eligible people have to buy the same from the shops of the distributors or at designated places.
TCB to procure soyabean oil, lentil and sugar from business groups
Dhaka, Jun 15 (UNB) - The Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB), the state-run marketing agency, will procure 1.92 crore litres of soyabean oil, 13,500 mts of lentils and 15,000 mts of sugar from different private business groups.
Cabinet Committee on Government Purchase (CCGP) at a meeting, with Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal in chair, approved different proposals of the Commerce Ministry in this regard on Wednesday.
According to the decision, the TCB will procure a total of 1.92 crore litres of soyabean oil at a rate Tk 201 per litre from Bashundhara Multifood, Sinha Edible Oil, Sonsing Edible Oil, Meghna Edible Oil, Super Oil Refinery and the City Edible Oil.
Read: Continue sell of TCB goods across country: HC
Secretary of the Cabinet Division Zillur Rahman said that the government will procure the essential items from these groups through negotiation by pursuing the direct purchase method (DPM).
He also informed that the TCB will procure 15,000 metric tons of sugar at a total cost of Tk 123.05 crore from the Meghna Sugar Refinery Ltd and the City Sugar Industries Ltd.
Each kg of sugar in a single packet will cost Tk 84 while each kg of a 50 kg bag will cost Tk 81.
The TCB will procure some 13,500 metric tons of lentil at a cost of Tk 158. 62 crore from ACI Pure Flour Ltd; Sena Kalyan Sangstha; NS Construction; Bangladesh Edible Oil Ltd.; Nabil Naba Foods Ltd.; and Ease Services Ltd. Each kg of lentil will cost Tk 117.5.
The additional secretary said that the government will distribute these products among the poor families through a programme.
The Cabinet Committee also approved a number of proposals from Bangladesh Agriculture Development Corporation (BADC) to import 70,000 metric tons of DAP fertiliser and 30,000 metric tons TAP fertiliser from different countries.
A proposal of Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC) received approval of the committee to import 30,000 metric tons of urea fertiliser from Fertiglobe Distribution Limited, UAE.
The additional secretary informed that Bangladesh was able to import this fertiliser from different countries at a relatively lower prices due to its long term contract with them.
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TCB to start selling edible oil, other commodities from mid-May
The Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) will start open market sale (OMS) of some essential commodities including edible oil from mid of May in Dhaka and other divisional cities.
The ministry is working to re-fix the prices of essentials including edible as their prices have gone up on the global market, said an additional secretary to the Commerce Ministry.
Also read: Govt approves fresh hike in edible oil price effective Friday
Primarily the TCB will engage 400 trucks for OMS after fixing the prices of commodities, he said.
In the month of Ramadan, the TCB sold soybean oil at Tk110 per liter, but the price of soybean and other edible oil jumped bothon local and global markets, so it is needed to re-fix the prices of TCB’s edible oil and other commodities, the official said.
Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi will brief reports on edible oil supply and management issue at his secretariat office on Monday, senior information officer of the ministry Abdul Latif Bakshi told UNB on Sunday.
Also read: Around 23 million litre soybean oil arrives at Chittagong port amid growing demand
Besides, Tipu Munshi will talk formally with the traders, edible oil importers and refiners regarding the current situation of edible oil price and supply in the market.
Stockpiling TCB goods in warehouse: 3 held in Ctg
RAB on Tuesday arrested three traders from Chattogram’s Cement Crossing Market for illegally stockpiling TCB goods to sell at the local market.
The arrestees are TCB’s main dealer in Bandar EPZ area Kamrul Islam Rashed (of Prakash Bhandari) and owners of Gauchia Store Md Jasim Uddin and Md Nuruullah.
RAB-7 vice-captain Major Md. Mostafa Zaman said that the warehouse was raided and the products were seized on the basis of a tip-off. The dealers were caught red handed while repacking the goods in that warehouse.
READ: TCB goods recovered from Gazipur market godown; trader arrested
During the preliminary interrogation, they admitted that the products belonged to TCB. A case will be filed against them, he said.
The TCB products seized from the warehouse included 2,000 liters of edible oil, 500 kg of sugar and 500 kg of lentils.
The arrestees and the seized goods were handed over to EPZ police.
Further hike in gas price will come as a big blow to masses: speakers
Speakers at a webinar on Saturday said that if gas prices are raised again for the household consumers in the current situation, it will come as a big blow to the masses amid the price hike of essentials.
“Really, the people are in a grim situation… the queues for TCB products are increasing day by day," said eminent energy expert Dr M Tamim while addressing the online seminar titled: “Would It Be Rational to Increase Gas Price Now?”
The remarks from the energy experts came against the backdrop that the Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) is going to hold a public hearing on March 21, on the appeals of the state-owned gas distribution companies to raise the tariff by 117 percent at the retail level for household consumers.
READ: Decision on gas price hike proposals after detailed analysis: BERC chairman
Energy and Power magazine organized the seminar which was also addressed by Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) chairman Abdul Jalil, Policy Research Institute (PRI) executive director Dr Ahsan H Mansur and chairman of the energy standing committee of FBCCI Humauyn Rashid.
EP editor Mollah Amzad Hossain conducted the seminar.
Dr Tamim said any sudden change in energy price will create problems for business sectors as well.
He said the government should suspend the development projects and divert the fund to protect the people’s lives as they are facing a war-like situation.
Dr Ahsan Mansur said if gas price is raised it will definitely affect the standard of living of the common people.
“Many will go under the poverty line in that case," he observed.
He suggested the government wait for some time for a stable position in the global energy market.
“Any decision in this regard should come after Ramadan," he said.
Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission chairman Abdul Jalil the energy regulatory body sent letters to the concerned departments to let it know whether there is any government’s decision on subsidy and on value added tax (VAT) and other duties on the import of liquefied natural gas before making any decision on the appeals of the state-owned companies to raise gas prices at retail level.
READ: Govt working to keep gas price within tolerable limit: Nasrul
He said this time the BERC technical team was asked to independently analyze the appeals of the gas distribution companies and make their observation.
He said the people are experiencing a huge inflation due to price escalation and injection of money from the stimulus packages.
TCB’s sale of essential items for 1 crore families starts Sunday
The Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) will start selling essential items at fair prices for 1 crore low-income families on Sunday.
The government has already prepared a list of 87 lakh card holders who will get 2 liters of edible oil, 2 kgs sugar and 2 kgs lentils.
The TCB will arrange ‘truck sale’ across the country to sell edible oil at Tk 110 per kg, sugar at Tk 55 per kg, lentil at Tk 65 per kg and onion at Tk 30 per kg
In order to facilitate the sale of TCB's products in a systematic manner, a list of these families has been prepared and special family cards have been distributed.
Also read: Crowds growing around TCB trucks, women lack the access
Of these, 12 lakh families in Dhaka North and South City Corporation and 90 thousand families in Barisal City Corporation could not be issued the family cards. And so, all of TCB's products will be sold to them through mobile trucks.
The list has been prepared with the help of Deputy Commissioners, Upazila Nirbahi Officers and people's representatives at the union level considering the local population and poverty indicators.
TCB Chairman Brigadier General Md. Ariful Hassan told UNB that in the first phase each beneficiary family will get 2 liters of edible oil, 2 Kgs sugar and 2 kgs lentils from March 20 to 31.
Also read:TCB to start selling for 10 million families from Mar 20: Minister
There are a lot of floating people in Dhaka city areas and special marking method will be applied to avoid duplication in providing the TCB products, he said.
Crowds growing around TCB trucks, women lack the access
Braving the scorching heat, Lucky Akther, wife of a rickshaw-puller, waited in a long queue for several hours to buy oil, onion and lentil at subsidised prices from a truck selling the goods of the Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) at Boubazar of Hajipara in the capital.
But she was not lucky enough to buy essentials on Wednesday as all stock of goods in the truck ran out fast because of the huge crowd of buyers.
“The prices of oil, onion and pulse have gone up so high in the market that it has become difficult for the poor like me to buy. So, I came here with the hope to purchase these items at relatively cheaper prices. But I only wasted around three hours here standing in the line as everything had run out before I reached the sellers,” an utterly frustrated Lucky told UNB.
Shompa Begum, a single mother of three kids who works as domestic help, had much more bitter experiences than Lucy’s.
READ: TCB to start selling for 10 million families from Mar 20: Minister
“I waited for several hours yesterday (Tuesday) to buy some TCB goods, but returned home empty-handed. I also failed to buy the essential items today (Wednesday) as those had run out fast before I could reach the frontline despite two hours of wait,” she said with a deep breath in the city’s Malibagh Bazar area.
Shompa said it is now difficult for her to buy these items from the market at exorbitant prices. “Believe me, I couldn’t cook any curry for the last two days for lack of oil and onion. We took rice with boiled mashed potato and green chili and dried food. How’ll we survive if the prices of essentials don’t come down?”
She alleged that many men forcibly occupy the frontlines and buy items managing the sellers.
Shompa said women should be allowed to stand in separate queues or a rule needs to be there that one woman can buy the goods from the truck after a man to ease the hassles of female buyers.
Like Lucky and Shompa, many poor people are failing to buy essential items at the subsidised rates due to inadequate supply by TCB against the growing demand.
The skyrocketing prices of essentials such as rice, oil, lentil and onion, have dealt a double blow to the poor and the middle-income groups who have been already hit hard by the fallout of the Covid pandemic, forcing them to rush to the open market sale (OMS) run by TCB Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) truck to purchase these goods at subsidised prices.
Ruhul Amin, a nightguard of Rampura area, said he could buy oil, rice, lentil, onion and sugar from a truck selling the TCB goods after waiting for several hours near Rampura Bridge. “TCB’s goods have now become a golden deer due to the soaring prices of the essential items in the regular market.”
He alleged that half of the amount of onion he bought from a TCB’s truck was rotten. “This an unfair treatment to us. Rotten goods can’t be sold by the government.”
Private service-holder Delwar Hossain said he is in a fix to run his five-member family with his limited income as the prices of all the necessary items have increased alarmingly. “No one can understand the suffering we’re going through now. It’s difficult for us to cope with the overheated market of commodities. We’re now being forced to stand in lines to buy goods from the TCB trucks.”
Delwar is not alone as many low and middle-income people are feeling the pinch of unusual price hikes of essentials across the country. The retailers are raising the prices of daily essential commodities, including rice, pulses, oil and sugar regularly showing an excuse of short supply.
In such a situation, the demand for commodities supplied by TCB has increased sharply. As the goods are less than the demand, the sale ends by noon.
TCB dealers said they are being supplied with very inadequate goods to meet the demands of huge buyers.
Visiting different spots in the city, it was seen that thousands of people were waiting for hours to purchase the goods from TCB dealers to ease the shock of ongoing price hikes. The queues get bigger within minutes after the arrival of trucks.
Talking to UNB, TCB dealer Jahangir said usually low-income people, including day-labourers, rickshaw-pullers, drivers or housemaids came to buy goods from them earlier. “But now the middle-class people are also gathering to buy goods from us. It’s difficult for us to handle such pressure from such a huge number of buyers. Some people become violent when our stocks run out.”
Akkas Uddin, a TCB goods seller in Tejgaon area, said they get 1580 kg of different types of goods every day that are sold out within two hours. “The supply of goods needs to be increased to meet the huge demand.”
READ: Now restaurants may have to run after TCB trucks!
Contacted, TCB Chairman Md Ariful Hassan said they are selling goods at lower prices in different points in Dhaka city in 150 trucks, which is only enough for 40,000 families.
“Each truck gets TCB goods like sugar, pulse, and onion and soybean oil for 250 to 300 families. We’ll try to cover all the needy people. We need cooperation from the city corporation councilors’ so that our goods reach the real poor and needy people,” Ariful said.
He said police stations have been asked to ensure discipline at the TCB’s selling points in their respective areas.
TCB to procure huge sugar, chickpea, lentil and edible oil for Ramadan supply
The Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) will procure a huge quantity of sugar, chickpea, lentil and edible oil from local suppliers to sell those to people during the Holy Ramadan.
Cabinet Committee on Public Purchase in a meeting on Thursday approved three separate proposals, placed by the Commerce Ministry in this regard.
Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal presided over the meeting virtually while members of the cabinet body attended it.
Read: Long queues near TCB trucks exposes reality: BNP
As per the decision, the TCB will procure a total of 14,000 metric tons of sugar-7000 mts from Meghna Sugar Refined Ltd and City Sugar Industries Ltd each- at a cost of Tk 110.60 crore.
It will procure a total of 10,000 mts of chickpea from three local firms at a cost of Tk 81.40 crore.
Of these, 2000 mts of chickpea will be procured from Sena Kalyan Sangstha at Tk 16.28 crore, 4000 mts from Blue Sky Enterprise at Tk 32.56 crore and another 4000 mts from Ruby Food Products Ltd at Tk 32.56 crore.
The TCB will procure 19,500 mts of lentil from 7 local firms at a cost of Tk 211.57 crore.
The firms are Sabnam Vegetable Oil Industries Ltd, Ease Services Ltd, Porbo International, 4. Roy Traders, 5. Plantegic Incorporation, Bashundhara Food & Beverage Ltd and Basumati Distribution Ltd.
Read: TCB to provide food support to 1 crore families during Ramadan: Tipu
The TOB will procure 1,71,15,652 litres of soybean oil from 6 firms at a cost of Tk 287.54 crore.
The firms are Sena Edible Oil Industries Ltd, Super Oil Refined Limited, Meghna Edible Oils Refinery Ltd, City Edible Oil Ltd, Bashundhara Multi Food Products Ltd and Shun Shing Edible Oil Ltd.
Long queues near TCB trucks exposes reality: BNP
BNP senior leader Nazrul Islam Khan on Thursday said the long queues in front of TCB trucks are exposing the real condition of the country’s people.
"You’ll feel the real condition of people seeing the TCB trucks. Long queues are seen every day in front of those trucks,” he told a human chain programme.
The BNP leader said even journalists are now lining up around TCB trucks, either wearing masks or covering their faces with mufflers or handkerchiefs. “This is the reality.”
Nari O Shishu Odhikar Forum, a platform of BNP, arranged the programme in front of the Jatiya Press Club, demanding the withdrawal of ‘false’ cases against its member secretary Nipun Roy.
Read: BNP’s 11-day programme to protest price hike
Nazrul, a BNP standing committee member, said people are struggling to survive and going to the markets of poor people to buy goods at relatively cheaper prices as their real income has declined.
“One of our ministers has said when he looks at Dhaka from the sky, he feels like he’s going to Los Angeles, and when he goes to a bathroom in the land, he feels like he’s in Singapore. You please go around the TCB trucks and visit a market of the poor to realise how people are struggling in the country to survive. Stop making such a cruel joke,” he said.
The BNP leader said more than 11,000 people have become new millionaires in Bangladesh amid the Covid pandemic. “On the other hand, 32.4 million people have become poorer in the country during this period.”
Read: People want a change in politics: GM Quader
He said the way the prices of essential items are going up but people cannot cope with it with their earnings.
“The prices of all essential items, including rice, pulses, oil, salt, pepper and onion are rising. That’s why we’ve decided to take to the streets in protest against it,” Nazrul said.
He called upon all the political parties and professional and other organisations to wage a united movement to protect the inserts of the poor and stop the growing price hike of key commodities.
TCB to provide food support to 1 crore families during Ramadan: Tipu
Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi on Thursday said the trading corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) will distribute rice and other essentials at reduced prices among 1.0 crore families during the upcoming fasting month of Ramadan.
TCB has taken preparation for distributing essentials including rice, flour, dates, edible oil, sugar and pulse among the people of lower income group and those who suffered from financial shock due to Covid-19 pandemic, the minister said.
He was speaking at the opening ceremony of Mutual Trust Bank’s air lounge at Syedpur Airport on Thursday.
Also read: TCB truck comes as relief amid price hike
The minister said, "We are trying to match with the international market so that people can buy daily necessities at low prices."
The 1.0 crore families will be assisted through TCB and OMS during Ramadan, he said.
“Our plan was to provide TCB’s benefits to 50 lakh families. But on the directive of the Prime Minister, it has increased to 1.0 crore families,” Munshi added.
Also read: Edible oil price increased in line with manufacturers' proposal
Nilphamari-4 MP Ahsan Adelur Rahman, Local Government Deputy Director Abdur Rahman, Superintendent of Police Mohammad Mokhlesur Rahman, Nilphamari Municipal Mayor Dewan Kamal Ahmed and Mutual Trust Back Chairman Hedayatullah Rono, among other, were present at the function.