The import of spice item onion from Indian to Bangladesh through Hili Land Port in Dinajpur fell drastically as the neighbouring country imposed a 40 percent duty on onion export with effect from Sunday (August 21, 2023).
No trucks carrying onion entered Bangladesh territory through the land port till 2:30 pm on Monday due to the execution of the duty. Later 17 trucks loaded with onions entered the port after the importers paid the duty.
The price of onion is soaring with the passage of time in local markets and one kg of onion is being sold for Tk 54 to 56 at the local storages (Hili).
Local importers said the onion price increased by Tk 8 to 10 per kg on Saturday following the decision to impose the duty from the Indian side.
Shahidul Islam, an importer of Hili Land Port, said an extra amount of Tk 10 will have to be counted to import per kg onion now and it will stand at Tk 50 to 56 against each kg which will ultimately impact on local markets.
Read: India imposes 40% duty on onion exports effective today
“Today we allowed a few Indian trucks-loaded with onions to enter Bangladesh as Letter of Credit (LC) was opened for those earlier,” he said, adding that otherwise the imported onions stranded on the India side would get rotten once not brought by paying the export duty.
Harununr Rashid, president of Hili Land Port Import-Export Group, said, “India always breaches the trade rules with us. They take decisions suddenly on all issues; we want India to withdraw the duty to keep onion exports normal.”
Read: Onion prices soar in Khulna market after India slaps duty on export
