DHAKA, June 7, 2024 (BSS) - State Minister for Commerce Ahsanul Islam Titu
today said that the government would try to continue providing essential
items to common and low income group people at subsidized and fair prices
through setting up permanent shops for the dealers of the Trading Corporation
of Bangladesh (TCB).

"Members of some one crore family card holders are now enjoying the essential
commodities of TCB at subsidized rates while there is an effort to increase
such coverage in future," he said.

The State Minister for Commerce said this while replying to a question at a
post-budget press conference at Osmani Memorial Auditorium in the capital
this afternoon.

Finance Minister AH Mahmood Ali moderated the press conference and replied
various queries of reporters. Planning Minister Major General (retd) Abdus
Salam, Industries Minister Nurul Majid Mahmud Humayun, Agriculture Minister
Md Abdus Shaheed, LGRD Minister Md Tajul Islam, Housing and Public Works
Minister RAM Obaidul Muktadir Chowdhury, Education Minister Mohibul Hasan
Chowdhury Nowfel, Prime Minister's Economic Affairs Adviser Dr Mashiur
Rahman, State Minister for Finance Waseqa Ayesha Khan, State Minister for
Commerce Ahsanul Islam Titu, Bangladesh Bank Governor Abdur Rouf Talukder,
NBR Chairman Abu Hena Md Rahmatul Muneem, Finance Division Secretary Md
Khairuzzaman Mozumder accompanied and assisted the Finance Minister at the
press conference.

Besides, State Minister for Information and Broadcasting Mohammad A Arafat,
secretaries and other senior officials were present at the press conference.

Mentioning that the government has reduced the duty on imports of essentials
like rice, lentil, chickpeas at 1 percent from 2 percent, Ahsanul said such
move would help to keep the prices of such items at tolerable level.

He informed that the Directorate of National Consumer Rights Protection
(DNCRP) would continue monitoring of the markets as it is a continuous
process. He said that the import duty and supplementary duty have been
reduced on a good number of products to put an impact on the market.

Citing that the food inflation is still comparatively high in the country due
to various reasons, the State Minister for Commerce said that efforts would
be there to reduce further the inflation including food inflation.

Ahsanul said the prices of imported sugar and edible oil remain less compared
to the previous year while the Ministry of Commerce's operations to monitor
the market would continue.