Prices of imported fruit are climbing in Jamalpur. Without proper market monitoring, the prices of foreign fruit such as grapes, apples, malta and oranges are rising constantly, putting them beyond the buying power of ordinary people.

A visit to the town's Sakal Bazar and Getpar on Sunday, 20 October, found that malta had risen by up to Tk 100 a kg in a year, grapes were selling up to Tk 200 higher and red apples up to Tk 120 higher. Importers blamed the dollar crisis, government taxes and goods not reaching the country on time.

Malta is selling at Tk 300 a kg, green grapes Tk 550, black grapes Tk 440 and Australian apples Tk 300. Dilshan red apples sell at Tk 350, green apples Tk 340 and China Fuji apples Tk 300 a kg. Depending on quality, pomegranates sell at Tk 580-600, oranges Tk 350-380, pears Tk 450, and malta at Tk 280, a second malta price given in the same report.

About a year ago, malta sold at Tk 220 a kg, green apples Tk 260-280, red apples Tk 250, Australian apples Tk 240, green grapes Tk 300 and black grapes Tk 380.

Nur Mohammad, shopping for fruit at Sakal Bazar, said: "A few months ago I bought grapes at Tk 250 a kg. Now they say Tk 550. Malta is much dearer too. Apples were Tk 180-190; now they are asking Tk 320. People who used to buy 3-4 kg of fruit now buy one kg. We will eat as Allah has given us the means."

Auto-rickshaw driver Abul Mansur said: "Guests turned up at home unexpectedly, so I bought two apples, two oranges and two maltas. At these prices, ordinary people like us cannot afford to buy fruit."

Fruit trader Md Shuvo told Jago News: "We sell at Tk 15-20 above what we pay. We have to buy at high prices, so we have to sell a bit higher."

Sujon, a fruit trader at Getpar, told Jago News: "Prices are very high, so there are not many buyers. Rickshaw pullers used to buy fruit for their families. Now, forget ordinary people, even senior government employees don't buy 2-3 kg of fruit."

Shamim Ahmed, general secretary of the Jamalpur Fruit Traders' Owners' Association, said fruit that has to be imported from abroad costs a little more.

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