There is no sign that rising prices will stop; instead essentials are getting dearer again and again. Good food is now out of reach, and middle- and low-income people cannot even touch fish or meat. Vegetable prices are also climbing, sugar and flour are stuck at high prices, and lentils and chickpeas have become dearer again.

At Middle Badda market on Friday (3 March) morning, beef was selling at Tk 750 a kg, castrated goat meat at Tk 1,100 and she-goat meat at Tk 900.

Broiler chicken and egg prices have been volatile for three weeks running. Broiler now sells at Tk 240–250 a kg and eggs at Tk 48–50 a hali (four).

The heat has now spread to the fish market. Common farmed fish are up by about Tk 40–50 a kg depending on type, while hilsa, shrimp and native fish from open waters are up by Tk 100–300.

Primary school teacher Fazlul Haque said at Middle Badda: "People like us who live on a budget can no longer eat beef. Even broiler cannot be bought cheaply now. Fish prices have risen too. What will we eat now?"

"Even though I want to, I cannot feed my children fish and meat. If I buy beyond my budget, other expenses suffer. I have never in my life seen all prices rise together like this," he said.

Meat seller Sadikul Islam said goat meat had gone up Tk 100 to 150 in two weeks. People are buying less meat, and there are no buyers at all for castrated goat meat.

Beef seller Harun Rashid said beef sold at Tk 700 a kg last month and is now Tk 50 higher. A week ago it could be sold for Tk 20–30 less, but not now.

From farmed pangas and tilapia to all native species, fish prices have gone up. Pangas that sold at Tk 150–160 a kg now costs Tk 180–200, and tilapia is Tk 220–250 a kg, up from Tk 180–200.

Poor and lower-middle-class buyers usually depend on broiler chicken and fish, and many voiced anger at the price rises.

Rickshaw puller Kumar Das said at Rampura market: "There is no way now to eat well even for one day. There is nobody to look into this. The government does not think about us." He said he earns Tk 600–700 a day. "If I buy fish for Tk 250 out of that, how will I cover other expenses?"

Fish seller Khalek at the same market said shrimp was selling at his shop for Tk 600–1,000 a kg, up from Tk 500–800. Other farmed fish also have to be sold at much higher prices: rui, catla and mrigal at Tk 340–360 a kg, up from Tk 280–320.

Native tengra, shing, gochi and boal cost Tk 650–800 a kg, up from Tk 600–650, though farmed versions of these fish are somewhat cheaper. Another fish seller, Jalal Mia, said the rise in prices of all essentials had affected the fish market too.

In groceries, oil, sugar, atta, flour, powdered milk and several other items remain stuck at high prices. Lentils and chickpeas have risen again over the week: chickpeas now sell at Tk 100–105 a kg, up from Tk 90–95 last week, while gram lentils (buter dal) are up Tk 10 at Tk 95–100 and black gram (mashkalai) at Tk 155–160.

Winter vegetables are up Tk 10–20, and the new summer vegetables are unaffordable: brinjal at Tk 80 a kg, bitter gourd Tk 120, yardlong beans Tk 120, pointed gourd Tk 120 and ridge gourd Tk 80.

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 at Tk 160–220.

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