TCB Increasing Collection of Four Items before Ramadan

In the wake of rising commodity prices, the government marketing agency TCB is increasing its procurement of gram, pulses, sugar, and soybean oil to keep the supply of goods at affordable prices uninterrupted during the month of Ramadan.

Four separate proposals in this regard were approved at a virtual meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Public Purchase chaired by Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal on Thursday (March 10).

According to the finance minister, the government has approved four proposals for TCB to purchase 1,71,15,652 liters of soybean oil, 14,000 tonnes of sugar, 10,000 tonnes of gram, and 19,500 tonnes of lentil pulses during the upcoming Ramadan. The total expenditure has been estimated at 691 crore 11 lakh 79 thousand 536 taka.

After the meeting, Additional Secretary to the Cabinet Zahirul Islam told reporters that the Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB), under the Ministry of Commerce, had set up Sena Edible Oil Industries Limited, Super Oil Refined Limited, Meghna Edible Oil Refining Limited, City Limited, Bashundhara Multi Food Products Limited and Shun Shing Edible Oil Limited. A total of one crore 71 lakh 15 thousand 652 liters of soybean oil will be purchased from Edible Oil Limited. The government will spend a total of 287 crore 54 lakh 29 thousand 536 taka for this. It has been approved for direct purchase by the government without any tender.

After the meeting, Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal said, "TCB is a backbone of our economy. The product needs to be delivered to the consumers on time just as it needs to be produced."

"We will take TCB to every union," he said, adding that more people would benefit from the government's marketing agency. "This time we want to deliver TCB products to one crore families during Ramadan."