Day labourers waiting for work at a market in Sylhet city to make a living as back-to-back flood spells and the ongoing student movement have made their daily life harder — FE Photo SYLHET, Aug 04: The commoners, especially the low and middle-income people, in Sylhet have been suffering a lot due to the unstable price situation created by repeated flood spells, followed by the ongoing student unrest for weeks together.
Sellers, however, claimed that poor supply against higher demand made the market situation unstable at least for the last two months.
However, economists as well as business leaders opined that regular market monitoring is a must alongside increase in production of various items including vegetables locally for a stable market.
Meanwhile, common buyers alleged that the sellers, especially the wholesale ones, take advantage of any minor crisis for manipulating the markets.
The government should intervene in the markets when required, said Ataur Rahman, employee of a private firm in the Sylhet city's Ambarkhana area.
Vendor Zaber Hossain at Rikabibazar said as the markets of Sylhet are mainly dependent on vegetables from other regions, the prices go up in any crisis.
Green chili was selling at Tk400 per kg on Friday while okra was available for Tk100 a kg, brinjal at Tk120 and potato at Tk60 per kg. Egg were selling for Tk150 to 155 per dozen.
Hailing from Derai upazila in Sunamganj, CNG-run auto-rickshaw driver Nurul Islam lives at a rented house at Barobazar in Sylhet.
He said to run a five-member family, he has to manage things somehow. He had to borrow Tk20,000 from a local money lender on high interest. He is not sure when it could be repaid.
Buying fish or meat has become almost impossible while managing vegetables is even very hard now-a-days, he said, adding, "I may think sending the family back to the village. That's also troublesome."
Repeated flood spells and ongoing student unrest have already hit up the Sylhet markets.
A number of sellers like Dulal Mia of the city's Subidbazar said there has been a short supply of goods at the kitchen markets as well as the grocery items while transport costs have also gone up.
Some business leaders like Khondaker Shipar Ahmed, a former president of the Sylhet Chamber of Commerce & Industries (SCCI), said, "For keeping the market situation stable, we need to raise production of the farm products locally and intensify regular market monitoring, ensuring regular supply of items etc. Otherwise it's hard to have a stable market here."
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