Coarse rice, cheap seasonal vegetables, pangas and tilapia fish or broiler chicken are a good holiday meal for low-income people. But with prices rising in the market, no one will find any relief buying any of these; they will be forced to settle for cheaper alternatives.

Within a week, coarse rice has gone up by Tk 1.5 to 2 a kg. With winter over, seasonal vegetables are selling at Tk 50 to 60 a kg. Farmed fish such as tilapia and pangas now cost Tk 200 to 220 a kg, and broiler chicken Tk 240 to 245 a kg. This was the picture on a visit to several kitchen markets in the capital on Friday (24 February).

Abul Hossain, a CNG auto-rickshaw driver at Khilgaon Railgate market, said: "Before, the things poor people ate went up in price less. Now those are the very prices that are shooting up. It's as if there is anarchy in the country. The market is full of goods, but you can't buy anything because of the prices."

Rice seller Sujon Mia at the same market said coarse rice alone had gone up Tk 1.5 to 2 in the past week. Paijam rice that used to sell at Tk 54 a kg now sells at Tk 56. Many traders do not have Guti Swarna rice, and its price is rising because supply of that coarse variety is short.

Broiler and egg prices, unsettled for about a month, have been rising in stages. Broiler chicken now at Tk 240 a kg was Tk 220 a week ago and Tk 160 a month ago. Eggs have risen by about Tk 15 a hali (four) over the month to Tk 50.

Kalam Hossain of SN Enterprise at Taltola market said broiler prices had been a little lower three days earlier but went up from Wednesday ahead of the Friday-Saturday weekend. "We have to buy at higher prices in the wholesale market," he said. "Last Monday and Tuesday we sold broiler Tk 10-20 cheaper."

Winter vegetables have gone up by Tk 10 to 20 at the end of the season, and the new summer vegetables are out of reach. Aubergine sells at Tk 80 a kg, bitter gourd Tk 120, yard-long beans Tk 120, pointed gourd Tk 120 and ridge gourd Tk 80. Lemons were selling at Tk 60 a hali.

Onions are cheap now, but ginger and garlic have not come down: ginger sells at Tk 140-280 a kg depending on quality, and garlic Tk 160-220.

Apart from pangas and tilapia, other fish were Tk 20 to 100 a kg dearer. Beef had gone up Tk 20 and was selling at Tk 720-760 a kg depending on the market.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.