The Bangladesh government has approved the immediate import of green chillies and waived all existing import duties in a decisive move to stabilize soaring market prices. The essential spice recently hit a record high of Tk 380-400 per kilogram driven by persistent rainfall and severe flooding in major chilli-producing districts.
Imports are scheduled to begin on Monday. Agriculture Minister Amin Ur Rashid announced the intervention during a spot inspection of Dhaka’s Shantinagar Kitchen Market on Sunday where he was accompanied by Commerce Minister Khandaker Abdul Muktadir and State Minister for Food Md Abdul Bari. The market visit directly followed a high-level secretariat meeting focused on ensuring adequate food supplies and controlling the costs of essential commodities.
"We expect green-chilli prices to come down to a tolerable level within the next two to five days" the Agriculture Minister stated reassuring the public that the supply injection will quickly cool the market.
To further protect consumers Commerce Minister Muktadir warned traders against price manipulation. He urged the media to provide objective ground-level reporting to prevent misinformation deter panic and ensure no one creates an artificial market shortage.
