Most Vegetables Above Tk 80 at Mirpur 1 Market, Potato and Onion Down Tk 5 a Kilo

Vegetable prices remain high in the capital's markets. Except for a few items, most vegetables are selling above Tk 80. However, potato and onion prices have fallen by Tk 5 a kilo compared with last week. Local garlic is down Tk 20 and Chinese ginger down Tk 40.

These prices were seen on Tuesday (27 October) at the kitchen market at Mirpur 1 in the capital. Egg and meat prices are unchanged, and there is no change in the market for essential grocery items either.

Local tomatoes are selling at Tk 160 a kilo, Indian tomatoes at Tk 120, unripe tomatoes at Tk 140, local carrots at Tk 100, Chinese carrots at Tk 140 and Indian new potatoes at Tk 160.

Long brinjal is Tk 80 a kilo, white round brinjal Tk 100 and black round brinjal Tk 120. Beans are Tk 120, local cucumber Tk 120, bitter gourd varieties uchhe and korola Tk 80 each, kakrol Tk 100, okra Tk 100, hybrid pointed gourd Tk 80, local pointed gourd Tk 120, snake gourd Tk 80, dhundal Tk 80, ridge gourd Tk 80, yardlong beans Tk 80, kochur loti Tk 80 to 100, radish Tk 60 and kochurmukhi Tk 100 a kilo.

Green chillies are Tk 160 a kilo, coriander leaves Tk 200, hybrid cucumber Tk 80, papaya Tk 40 and sweet pumpkin Tk 50. Depending on quality, each bottle gourd is Tk 80 to 100, wax gourd Tk 60, cauliflower Tk 60 and cabbage Tk 60. Raw bananas are Tk 40 per hali (four) and lemons Tk 40 per hali.

Among the items that fell, cross-variety onions are selling at Tk 50 a kilo depending on size and quality and local onions at Tk 55. Red and white potatoes are Tk 25 a kilo and Bogura potatoes Tk 40. Local garlic is Tk 100, Chinese garlic Tk 180 to 200 and Chinese ginger Tk 160 a kilo.

Vegetable seller Md Shah Alam said, 'Vegetable prices actually depend on quality. Good quality costs a little more. And the ones sold from vans or by the roadside outside the market cost much less.'

Another seller said, 'Prices can go up or down for many reasons. These are perishables… prices fluctuate every day. If fewer vegetables arrive the price rises, and if trucks are not available to bring vegetables the price rises too. If it suddenly rains, prices will go up. It is not really fixed.'

Sheikh Al-Amin, who came to shop, said, 'Except for one or two vegetables, everything in the market is expensive. Because of these prices, people like us now have to buy less than we need. How will families with more members manage? For low-income people, it has become difficult just to eat and survive.'

In the meat market, broiler chicken is selling at Tk 168 to 188 a kilo, cock chicken at Tk 300 to 310, layer chicken at Tk 320 and local chicken at Tk 620 to 650. Beef is Tk 800 a kilo and mutton Tk 1,250. Red eggs are Tk 125 to 130 a dozen, white eggs Tk 120 and duck eggs Tk 180.

In the fish market, depending on size and weight, rui is selling at Tk 300 to 700 a kilo and katla at Tk 300 to 550. Kalibaush is Tk 400 to 700, shrimp Tk 700 to 1,800, kachki Tk 400 to 600 and koi Tk 220 to 250 a kilo. Pabda is Tk 400 to 600, batasi Tk 1,000 to 1,400, kajoli Tk 1,200 to 1,600, shing Tk 400 to 1,400, tengra Tk 600 to 1,000 and rupchanda Tk 1,000 to 1,600.

Among groceries, packaged polao rice is Tk 230 a kilo and loose polao rice Tk 160 to 200 depending on quality. Small masur lentils are Tk 140 to 150, thick masur Tk 90, small mug lentils Tk 170 and chickpeas Tk 105 a kilo. Bottled soybean oil is Tk 204 a litre, loose soybean oil Tk 205 a kilo and loose mustard oil Tk 220 a litre. Packaged and loose sugar is Tk 110 a kilo, a two-kilo packet of flour is Tk 170 and atta Tk 140. Canned and loose ghee is Tk 1,400 a kilo.