<div style="text-align: justify; "><b style="font-size: 1rem;">In the face of severe oppostion criticism in parliament for his alleged failure to control price hike of the essential commodities Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi on Monday offered to resign if&nbsp; the prime minister gives the responsibility of running the ministry to one of the opposition MPs.</b><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Gonoforum MP Mokabbir Khan fired the first shot against Tipu Munshi during the discussion on proposed&nbsp; cut motion on the Ministry of Commerce in the budget for FY2023-24.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Jatiya Party MPs also criticised the commerce minister for the rising prices of daily products. They also raised the question whether the 'business' minister, Tipu Munshi, is involved with the market syndicate or not.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Cow rawhide price increases by 6 percent this year: Tipu Munshi</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Rustam Ali Faraji of Jatiya Party said in the discussion on the retrenchment proposal, what does the monitoring cell of the ministry do?&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“Such a big ministry. If the minister does not have dynamism then the price will increase. If only one person works and everyone sleeps, then the country will not run. Market syndicates should be broken up. It is certainly possible if desired. But if you think the business belongs to me then it is sad for the country and its people.”</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Jatiya Party's Shamim Haider Patwari said that even though the commodity prices have decreased in global markets in the last few months, it is not affecting the country.&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Avoid excessive buying to keep markets stable: Commerce Minister</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“Inflation in Bangladesh was 6 percent now it seems to be 10 percent. It is growing. Inflation is eating away people's income. Due to inflation, soap, bread are all getting smaller," he said.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">He mentioned that making the government budget and household budget are not the same thing.&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">He said that the budget of the government is decreasing and due to this rice, pulses, oil, chicken size and meat pitches are getting smaller.&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“The economy of Bangladesh is trapped in a vicious cycle of inflation. The government should take steps to overcome this," he said.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“There are syndicates. There is no doubt about it. That syndicates are powerful. But are they stronger than the government? I don't think they can be stronger than the government. If there is a syndicate within the government, it must be identified," he said.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Bangladesh allows green chilli import as price keeps rising</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">He said that the minister has a vast business.&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“He is a successful businessman. I believe that if he is given the freedom to act, then he can definitely control it," said he.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Gonoforum MP Mokabbir Khan said that the most unsuccessful ministry of the current government is the Ministry of Commerce.&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“When you go to the market, you hear from people that the Ministry of Commerce is so unsuccessful that people call it a syndicate friendly ministry.”</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">With higher spice prices, consumers feeling the pinch this Eid-ul-Azha</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Alleging the involvement of a syndicate of traders to increase the price of goods, Mokabbir said that many people said that the commerce minister was involved.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“Why don't you resign after all this?” Mokabbir asked the the commerce minister.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Mokabbir said that when the commerce minister says that the price of a product will decrease, the price of that product increases the next day.&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">He said that he knows that the minister will not give any answer.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Spice prices soar in Faridpur ahead of Eid-ul-Azha</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Jatiya Party Member of Parliament Roshan Ara Mannan said that people get upset when they go to the market.&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“The Ministry of Commerce is not monitoring the market properly. The commerce minister is a freedom fighter. Why can't he control the market ?”</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Jatiya Party lawmaker Pir Fazlur Rahman said that the minister of state for industries said that people cry when they go to market, and the only reason is the syndicate.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“People also understand this. The Russia-Ukraine war alone should not be blamed for the rise in commodity prices. The syndicate has looted thousands of rupees in the egg market. Chicken eggs do not come from Ukraine.”</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Forex reserves likely to increase due to govt steps: PM Hasina tells Parliament</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">He said that the commerce minister has said that some traders are taking advantage of the product prices.&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“Our commerce minister can not arrest the syndicate people who raise prices. He himself is a businessman. He knows which businessmen are doing it. So are these businessmen close to him, which is why he can't catch the syndicate businessmen?”</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">He demanded that the commerce minister should say publicly why he is not able to do that.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Pir Fazlu said that Tk 1500 crore has been looted in the onion market.&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“A few companies are looting Tk 17 crore daily in the sugar market. Thousands of crores of taka has been looted in boiler chicken market in a month and a half. The commerce minister can't do anything.”</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Tipu Munshi said that it is possible to take actions against the market syndicate including jail and fine.&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“There is talk of syndicate. It's just that big groups do a lot of business together. We need to focus - we jailed, fined. That might be possible. But it will be difficult for us to bear the sudden crisis. That's why we try to stay within the rules through discussion,” he said.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Referring to his involvement in politics long before coming to business,&nbsp; Tipu said, "One thing that comes up time and again is that I am a businessman and businessmen are taking advantage of me. I don't know how many years of experience they have in politics. But I have been in politics for 56 years. I have been in business for 40/42 years now.”</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Responding to Mokabbir's demand, the minister said, "Someone here asked me to resign. I will tell the honorable prime minister that if he (Mokabbir) takes responsibility, she can relieve me and give the responsibility to him. I have no problem.”</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Tipu said that the price has increased and the prime minister repeatedly says that people are suffering.&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">He mentioned that the global situation has affected the country, not the internal causes. “we have to take that into consideration."</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Talking about the onion price, the minister said, there is no doubt that the price has increased. Onions have been mentioned. We discussed with the Ministry of Agriculture and decided that farmers should get a price that encourages them to grow.&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">He mentioned that in onion, the country has a shortfall of 6 to 7 lakh tonnes every year.&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“Farmers will focus on production if the price is better. By this step our deficit is reduced by half. But it should not be exactly Tk 80 to 90 per kg. That is why we have arranged the import," he said&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">He said that the government did not want to import onion for ensuring fair price to the local farmers.&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“But we imported on the instructions of the prime minister. Imported Indian onions are now Tk 40/45 per kg. Today, the price of our desi onion is Tk 65. I think it should be reduced further. we are trying. Within 10/15 days it will come to within Tk 50 a kg”</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The minister said that everything is not fixed by the Ministry of Commerce.&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“I am still taking responsibility and we are trying our best to do what we can," he stated.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Regarding sugar price surge, he said&nbsp; he has requested the prime minister to reduce the duty structure to bring down the price within Tk 100 a kg. UNB</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; ">bnbd24/kh</div>