Chilli prices heat up, traders blame rain

The price of green chilli has soared to Tk600 per kg in parts of the country, especially in Dhaka and Barisal.

The price of green chilli has soared to Tk600 per kg in parts of the country, especially in Dhaka and Barisal, and consumers blame the lack of monitoring from the local administration for the drastic increase.

Traders, however, said a shortage of supply during the Eid-ul-Azha holidays and continued rainfall is behind the price hike.

Recently, the government allowed the import of green chilli in the wake of surging prices in local markets ahead of Eid-ul-Azha. Despite the permission for imports, the price of chilli is still going up.

In Dhaka, the price of parsley also jumped significantly, with each kg priced at Tk300 on Saturday. 

During a recent visit to some local markets in Barisal city, UNB found that consumers were purchasing green chilli at a high price due to a supply shortage.

Per kg green chilli was being sold at Tk500 on the Wednesday before Eid-ul-Azha, but on Friday they were being sold at Tk600 per kg.

Traders claimed that they are making less profit from selling green chilli as continued rainfall had damaged crops.

In the Mirpur-1 kitchen market, Selina Hossain, a customer, said: “We heard of the import of chillies, but the initiative seems to have backfired.”  

Motahar Uddin, a resident of Kaunia in Barisal city, said: “My salary is Tk9,000 and the price of green chilli is Tk600 per kg. After hearing the price, I have decided to buy red chilli. Prices of other vegetables are also beyond the capacity of low-income people.”

Had the local administration monitored the market regularly, the skyrocketing prices of green chilli may have remained within limits, he told UNB.

Arafat, a college student, said: “I live in a mess and after visiting the kitchen market I found that tomatoes are being sold at Tk250 per kg and green chilli at Tk600. The vendors have many excuses to increase the price of essential items.”

Vegetable trader Rahmat at Jailkhana Road said the supply of green chilli is inadequate in local markets and people were not buying chilli after hearing the prices. 

Apurba Chowdhury, Deputy Director of the Department of National Consumers Rights and Protection, said many green chilli croplands have been damaged due to rain and the supply of vegetables is low during the Eid holidays. 

The authorities concerned are monitoring the market regularly, he said.