Worries of middle-class

The article "Middle-class fighting a losing battle" by Shafiqul Alam in your editorial page recently drew a real-life scenario of the middle-class group. There has been a dramatic rise in most food prices in recent months. I agree with the writer that people are now finding it difficult to meet their basic needs. Besides food price, transportation cost, house rent, educational expenses and medical treatment costs have also increased sharply. Why is the government not taking any action against the hoarders of food items? It appears that foodgrain prices are likely to remain high for some time. Thus, the country has to broaden its safety net programmes to protect the poor and ensure food security for all. Arable land is decreasing at about one percent annually, although a proportion of cultivable land is being shifted from crop cultivation to more profitable enterprises such as fishery, livestock farming and agro-forestry. But government should give importance to save arable land to ensure enough production to save poor and the middle-class from miseries. Mustafizur Rahman Nilkhet, Dhaka