Satkhira fruit prices rose Tk 20 to 80 a kg in Ramadan; buyers shopped by the gram

On 22 February 2026, in the first week of Ramadan, fruit in the markets of Satkhira, in south-western Bangladesh, was beyond the reach of many ordinary shoppers. A field report by Jago News's Satkhira correspondent found that fruit prices had risen by Tk 20 to 80 a kilogram over the previous week. Many low- and middle-income buyers were going home without the fruit they wanted, and those who once bought by the kilo were buying by the gram.

Following the decision of the National Moon Sighting Committee, fasting in Bangladesh began that year on Thursday 19 February. Fruit is most in demand at iftar, when the fast is broken. The prices were gathered from fruit shops at Sultanpur Bara Bazar, Hater More, Thana More and New Market More in Satkhira town and from markets in several upazilas.

Satkhira is known for its fruit, yet local produce was dear too. Guava that sold for Tk 70 to 80 a kg before Ramadan was fetching Tk 100 to 150. Good papaya cost Tk 80 to 140 a kg and watermelon Tk 80 to 90. Lemons were Tk 4 to 10 each and green coconuts Tk 120 to 150 each. Narkeli kul, apple kul and BAU kul, varieties of the jujube, sold at Tk 60 to 150 a kg. Sagar bananas cost Tk 50 to 60 a kg and sabri bananas Tk 80 to 100.

Red apples sold at Tk 300 to 350 a kg and green apples at Tk 350 to 400. Malta cost Tk 320 to 360, pomegranate Tk 400 to 550 and red grapes Tk 600 a kg. Ordinary dates had passed Tk 400 a kg; better dates sold at Tk 800 and premium varieties at Tk 1,500 to 2,000.

Satkhira was not alone. Prothom Alo reported on 21 February that wholesale prices of apples, oranges and grapes in Chattogram had also risen within a week. The paper noted that Bangladesh imports 38 kinds of fruit, about 95 percent of them apples, oranges, malta, grapes and pomegranates. Imported fruit began to climb in June and July 2022, when duties were raised to discourage imports during the dollar shortage and the exchange rate also rose. Sirajul Islam, president of the Bangladesh Fresh Fruits Importers Association, told Prothom Alo that duties and taxes on fruit came to about 123 percent.

Day labourer Masud Hossain told Jago News that a doctor had advised fruit for his sick child, but the price of a kilo of apples would buy two days' groceries for his family, so he was going home empty-handed. Private-sector employee Belal Hossain blamed a traders' syndicate and left with only a kilo of bananas and 500 grams of kul. Housewife Fatema Begum said even lemon sharbat had become a luxury.

Sellers denied the syndicate claims. Shamim Hossain, a retailer at Sultanpur Bara Bazar, said sales had fallen sharply and that customers who used to buy a kilo were now buying half a kilo or 250 grams. Local fruit trader Idris Hossain said lorry hire and labour for bringing fruit from villages had risen and prices were already high at the mokam, the wholesale market. Md Kabirul Islam, a fruit importer at Bhomra land port, cited the stronger dollar, high import duty and difficulty opening letters of credit at banks. Bhomra, in Satkhira Sadar upazila, is a land port for trade with India; the Indian side is called Ghojadanga.

Md Mehedi Hasan Tanvir, assistant director of the Directorate of National Consumers' Rights Protection in Satkhira, told Jago News that his office was monitoring markets regularly and checking traders' purchase and sale receipts during drives. Where dishonest syndicates or irregularities were found, action including fines was being taken under the law, and the drives would continue until the day before Eid, he said. The directorate, set up under the Consumer Rights Protection Act, 2009, hears consumer complaints about goods and services and can fine businesses found at fault.

Photo: Yahya / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Sources: Jagonews24, Prothom Alo, Wikipedia