The green chilli market has become volatile as its retail price shot up to Tk 200-240 a kilogram on Sunday.
In a single day, the price of the spice went up by Tk 40-60 per kg.
The egg price also maintained previous highs of Tk 150-165 a dozen, battering commoners further, market insiders said.
The price of green chilli remained between Tk 60 and Tk 100 a kg between January and April, but started rising from the first week of May which traders attributed to a low production as well as the stoppage of import.
Helal Uddin, a vegetable vendor at Rayerbazar in the capital, was selling green chilli at Tk 220 a kg on Sunday morning.
Its wholesale price has been increasing every day since the beginning of May, he says.
He also said the green chilli price shot up to Tk 190-195 a kg at Sadeq Khan Wholesale Market in Beribadh.
Meanwhile, the spice was found retailing at Tk 240-250 a kg in Mohammadpur, Dhanmondi and Palashi areas of the capital.
Helal further said the green chilli market is showing the symptoms of last year when its prices reached Tk 600-800 a kg in Dhaka.
However, the government later gave permission to import green chilli.
Azgar Hossain, a vegetable trader at Sadeq Khan Market, said local production of green chilli dropped notably amid a month-long drought in the country.
He also said its import was also stopped with the beginning of the winter crop in Bangladesh.
Experts said the key problem with chilli supply is that it is mainly grown in the winter season that falls between November and April in Bangladesh.
The country produces above 0.65 million tonnes of chilli annually of which winter crop covers 0.55 million tonnes, according to the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS).
Meanwhile, the egg market also remained volatile as a dozen of eggs retailed at Tk 150-165 on the day.
All other essential commodities' prices remained static on the day, maintaining their previous highs.
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