Agriculture Secretary Md Sayedul Islam said on Sunday the government started working to reduce high prices of vegetables by dismantling syndicate of middlemen.
"We have started working by incorporating district administrations and the Department of Agriculture Marketing to find out where the middlemen are present. After that, the government will take initiatives to reduce vegetable prices," he told the media at his Bangladesh Secretariat office in the capital.
Blaming the middlemen for the present high prices of vegetables, he said due to their unscrupulous activities, the consumers in the capital had to purchase vegetables at prices between Tk 60 and Tk 70 a kg, which ranged from Tk 10 to Tk 20 a kg at Palashbari in Gaibandha district.
"The Ministry of Agriculture is working (research) to find out the causes of vegetable price hike. So far, the information we've got clearly indicate that the middlemen are mainly responsible for it. We're working to check their activities."
Mr Islam also opined that the rainfall that took place on December 5 last year caused damages to vegetable fields in some areas. It also forced farmers to cultivate again, which increased their production cost.
"So, it was another reason for the price spiral of vegetables."
The agriculture secretary mentioned that the prices of vegetables fluctuated due to different factors, including natural calamity, and the real reasons could be known after completing the government's ongoing research.
Meanwhile, the prices of different vegetables are still high despite their sufficient supply in the city's kitchen markets during the peak season.
A kg of bean was sold between Tk 40 and Tk 50, while tomato Tk 40-50, brinjal Tk 50-60, cucumber Tk 40-50, and carrot Tk 40-50 on Sunday.
