Moktar Ali, 48, a private-sector employee, reached the market at 7am and two hours later had still bought nothing. His in-laws were visiting and he wanted fish, chicken and vegetables, but with Tk 1,340 in his pocket the sums did not add up. "Prices fall as the morning wears on, so I walk around waiting," he told Bangla Tribune.
At Rai Saheb Bazar in Old Dhaka on Sunday, most vegetables, including aubergine, bitter gourd, yardlong beans, okra, pointed gourd and teasle gourd, sold for Tk 80-120 a kg. Bitter gourd was Tk 120, pointed gourd Tk 80, ridge gourd Tk 120, snake gourd Tk 80, taro Tk 80 and okra Tk 80, with flat beans at Tk 220 and cauliflower Tk 120-150 a head. Green papaya was cheaper at Tk 35-40 a kg. Eggs cost more than Tk 150 a dozen.
Sonali-type (cock) chicken sold for Tk 350-380 a kg and broilers for Tk 280-290. Small rui cost Tk 360-400 a kg and large rui Tk 500, tilapia Tk 230-250, pangas Tk 250-280, pabda Tk 450 and small shrimp Tk 800-1,000. Sellers were asking Tk 1,200-1,500 a kg for small hilsa. Beef was Tk 820 a kg and goat meat Tk 1,200.
Like Moktar Ali, many shoppers ask around and wait, because fish and vegetables get a little cheaper at the end of the morning. Buyers Shamsul Haque and Sanjida Khanam said all they want is for everyday shopping to stay affordable; as it is, they think a hundred times before buying.
The report is by Bangla Tribune's Atik Hasan Shuvo.
Photo: Bellayet / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Source: Bangla Tribune
Comments
(0)