90 tonnes of onions arrive from India through Benapole after 3 months

Onion imports from India have resumed through the Benapole land port in Jashore after a gap of three months.

The consignment entered Bangladesh through the Petrapole port in India and arrived at Benapole land port in Sharsha upazila of Jashore.

The imported onions reached Bangladesh at around 2pm today (15 December). The importers were M/s HKA Enterprise of Satkhira and M/s Sabah Enterprise of Jashore.

Confirming the matter, Rafiqul Islam Royal, owner of Royal Enterprise, the clearing agent handling the consignment, said the shipment comprised 90 tonnes of onions carried in three trucks. 

Earlier, only 60 tonnes of onions were imported in September.

Following the news of the import, consumers expect onion prices to fall further in the local markets.

On a visit to Jashore city's Borobazar today, it was found that prices had already started to decline. Locally produced murikata onions were selling at Tk105 per kilogramme, down by Tk5, while locally produced dry onions were selling at Tk120 per kilogramme, down by Tk10.

Traders said wholesale prices had fallen after news of the Indian imports, which has had a knock-on effect on retail prices.

Shyamal Kumar Nath, deputy assistant officer at Beanpole Plant Quarantine Center, said the Ministry of Commerce has permitted onion imports from India on a limited scale.

He said 200 importers will be issued import permits each day, and each importer will be allowed to import between 30 and 60 tonnes of onions.

He urged the government to fully open import permits for onions, saying this would help reduce prices further in the domestic market.