TCB to buy 8.0m litre soybean oil for selling at subsidised rate

The Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) is all set to procure 8.0 million litres of soybean oil to sell the essential item at an affordable price, officials said.

It has already floated a tender to buy the cooking oil locally, they added.

Board of directors of the state-run trading agency has also given green signal to purchase the kitchen essential, said an official at the TCB.

It has taken the move as part of its purchase plan approved by the commerce ministry. It sells soybean oil at a subsidised rate as part of occasional market intervention drives that aims at stabilising prices of essentials.

"We've taken initiatives to ensure adequate supply of different key essential items and keep their prices stable in the market," a senior official of the commerce ministry said on Monday.

"The market monitoring teams have been reinforced. We've asked them to be more careful about their duties throughout the year."

The TCB has been operating its sales drive at subsidised rates across the country since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in the country. The number of beneficiaries of the programme has increased significantly due to the pandemic, said the official.

Under the drive, it sells soybean oil, sugar, lentil, and onion occasionally.

Earlier, the TCB launched its drive to provide essential items to some 10 million low-income families ahead of the last holy month of Ramadan. The program is now being operated every month across the country.

Soybean is now being sold at Tk 110 per litre while sugar and lentil at Tk 55 and Tk 65 per Kg respectively.