HC orders forming body to probe price hike of farm produce
FE REPORT | Monday, 29 January 2024
The High Court on Sunday ordered formation of a high-powered committee to investigate the abnormal price hike of various agro-products including potatoes, eggs, and onions.
The commerce secretary has been asked to comply with this order and to submit a report to the court within 30 days.
The High Court bench of Justice Mustafa Zaman Islam and Justice Md Atabullah passed the order after hearing on a writ petition filed in this regard as a public interest litigation.
The court also issued a rule asking officials concerned of the government to explain why their failure to check the price hike of these products should not be declared illegal.
In the rule, the HC also asked them to show causes as to why they should not be directed to set up market infrastructure for the sale and marketing of agricultural products close to the locations of those products.
In the rule, the HC also wanted to know why the respondent's failure to establish market infrastructure and cold storage near the production areas of these agricultural products should not be declared illegal.
The Agriculture Secretary, Commerce Secretary, Finance Secretary, Public Administration's Senior Secretary, Director General of the Department of Agricultural Marketing, and Chairman of the Trade Corporation of Bangladesh have been asked to comply with the rules within four weeks.
Some news media outlets published reports on an unusual increase in prices of various agricultural products including potatoes, eggs, and onions.
Annexing the published reports, Supreme Court lawyer Manoj Kumar Bhowmik filed the writ petition, seeking necessary directives to this effect in December last year.
Lawyer Monoj himself argued for his petition, while Deputy Attorney General Tushar Kanti Roy represented the state during the hearing on the petition.
The writ Petitioner argued that the government would structure the market close to the production areas of agro-products, which is one of the objectives of the Agricultural Marketing Act.
As per Provision 4 (chcha) of the Act of 2018, construction and management of market infrastructure, warehouses, cold storage, etc have to be established in agricultural goods' production areas for the sake of fair marketing, the lawyer said. The Department of Agricultural Extension is bound to establish these structures. But there is no visible implementation of the provision, he said.