October 1, 2020: The Chittagong Plant Quarantine Station (Sea Port) of the Department of Agricultural Extension issued the release order against the onion shipment on Monday.
Deputy Director of the station Dr Ashaduzzaman Bulbul confirmed the matter to Dhaka Tribune. The consignment reached the port at a time when the country’s onion market is facing high instability in light of the Indian ban on the export of the item.
Bangladesh has traditionally been dependent on India for a good chunk of onions. Of the newly arrived shipment, 54 metric tons are from Myanmar while the remaining 116 tons have been imported from Pakistan.
The Chittagong Plant Quarantine Station (Sea Port) earlier issued 329 import permits against 150,955 tons of onions from September 3 till September 29. The onion will be imported from 12 countries, according to the authorities.
Importers are required to obtain permission from the Plant Quarantine Station before opening a letter of credit for importing agricultural products. Ashaduzzaman Bulbul said that the authorities were helping traders complete import proceedings fast, issuing the import permit (IP) and release orders without any delay.
Talking to Dhaka Tribune, Khatunganj Hamid Ullah Market Traders’ Welfare Association General Secretary Mohammad Idris said that the overheated onion market would cool down soon with the arrival of big consignments now in the pipeline.
The Indian government on September 14 banned exports of all types of onions to Bangladesh, citing a shortage in supply in India itself due to heavy rainfall and floods. The domestic market drastically became unstable following the export ban as almost 90% of the imported onions would come from India.
Earlier on September 29 last year, India imposed a ban on the export of onions to Bangladesh due to a price hike of the item in its domestic market. The restriction pushed up onion prices in Bangladesh almost overnight. Prices skyrocketed to Tk250 per kilogram. India lifted the ban on March 15 this year.
Source: Dhaka Tribune
