Export and import activities between Bangladesh and India remained suspended since this morning due to Eid-e-Miladunnabi, marking the birth of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). The trade activities between the two countries remained suspended since morning as there is a national holiday in the Bangladesh side, said Harun-or-Rashid, president of Hili Land Port Export-Import group. Onion import through Dinajpur’s Hili port falls after India imposes 40pc export duty The trade activities will resume on Saturday as Friday is a holiday. However, the immigration activities are going on as usual, said in-charge of Hili Immigration Check-post, Sheikh Ashraf. Indian onion reaches Hili port, price drops

Export-import activities between Bangladesh and India through the Hili land port in Dinajpur district is suspended since this morning due to Janmashtami, a major religious festival of the Hindu community. All activities at the land port also remained suspended while immigration services are on as usual, said Mostafizur Rahman, general secretary of Hili Land Port Export-Import group . Trade through Hili land port suspended due to election on the Indian side  Trade between Bangladesh and India through Hili land port will resume on Thursday, he said. Trade through Sonamasjid land port resumes after 6 days

The Revenue Department of the Indian Finance Ministry has imposed a 40 percent duty on onion exports to Bangladesh effective today (August 20, 2023), causing a hike in the price of the item mainly used as spice in local markets. An Indian gazette notification signed by Amreeta Titus, deputy secretary of the Revenue Department under the Finance Ministry, said the duty will remain effective till December 31 this year. India imposed the duty for the first time. Importers of Hili Land Port said earlier they paid no tax for importing onions from India. Due to the 40 percent duty, an extra Tk 10 per kg will have to be counted. Read: Indian onions start reaching Satkhira, leading to prices easing down On the other hand, each kg of onion is being sold at Tk 50 since this morning. Per kg of onion was being sold at Tk 39-47 just a day back. They said Sunday is a weekly holiday in India and import of onion won’t be possible until the newly imposed duty is not paid, urging the Bangladesh government to look for alternative markets to import the item from. Read: Indian onions start arriving through land ports as import resumes Indian exporters said onion prices are soaring in the country and the government has imposed the duty to discourage exports. They suspected that the prices may be hiked next month as substantial amounts of onions rotted due to excessive heat. Read more: Govt to allow onion import from Monday: Agriculture Ministry

Onions from India have started arriving in Bangladesh through land ports on the border as the government announced resumption of onion import after over two months of restriction. The agriculture ministry took the decision to allow importing onions on Sunday (June 4, 2023) considering the unusual price hike. Two trucks loaded with 40 metric tonnes of Indian onions entered through Hili land port in Dinajpur at 5:45 pm today (June 6, 2023). Read more: Govt to allow onion import from Monday: Agriculture Ministry Shahidul Islam, an importer, said, “There has been a shortage of imported onions in the country since mid-March. As a result, the price of local onions skyrocketed in both retail and wholesale markets after Eid-ul-Fitr.” “In this situation, importers have been demanding that the government allow them to import onions from India, to keep the price stable. Keeping the traders and consumers in mind, the Ministry of Agriculture has given permission to import onions from India on Sunday,” he said. Although the imported onions are yet to reach the market, prices have already started to go down as the news broke.    Read more: Proper preservation of onions to end instability, crisis: Agriculture Minister  Moinul Haque, a retail trader at Hili Bazar, said onions were being sold at Tk 80 per kg this evening – Tk 5 less compared to this morning. “We may see a fall in onion prices in the coming days,” he said. Meanwhile, 57 onion-carrying trucks from India have entered the country through Sonamasjid land port in Chapainawabganj. Prabhat Kumar Singh, assistant commissioner of customs at Sonamasjid land port, said the trucks carrying 1,097 metric tonnes of onions have entered Bangladesh. Read more: Govt aiming to become self-sufficient in onions: Agriculture Minister “Trucks are allowed to enter the port only after receiving IP approved documents,” he said. The government stopped importing onions from India from March 16 this year to ensure fair prices for onions produced by local farmers.

Importers are suspecting that onion price in the country may go up during Ramadan, as the government of Bangladesh has decided to not issue new permits for importing Indian onions after March 15 through the Hili land port -- to ensure local farmers get a fair price. “Large consignments of onions are being imported now through Hili land port to keep prices stable during Ramadan. But the government decided to not issue new onion import permits from India, which may make the onion market unstable,” Senior Vice President of Hili Land Port Import-Export Group Shahidul Islam said while speaking at a press conference on Monday (March 14, 2023) night.  Read More: Onion imports through Benapole resume after 2 months If onion imports stop after March 15, importers will suffer financially. Consumers also have to buy onions at higher prices during Ramadan, he added.  Mostafizur Rahman, general secretary of the organization, said that it is necessary to continue importing onions throughout the month of Ramadan and keep the prices stable.  Currently, imported onions are being sold at Tk 24 and domestic onions at Tk 26 per kg at retail level.  Read More: Magura onion farmers in tears as prices plummet

A recent decline of  onion import from India through Hili land port has raised the retail price to Tk 10-12 per kg and wholesale price to Tk 14-15 per in the market. Indian Nashik onion was being sold at Tk 44-46 which was being sold at Tk 35-36 per kg just two days ago, and Indore onion price rose to Tk 40 per kg from Tk 30-32 at retail market in Hili land port area on Saturday. Meanwhile the price of local onions hiked Tk 10 and is being sold at Tk 58-60 per Kg now. Also read: Drive to control commodity prices: Two onion traders fined As the onion import is lower than the demand in the market hence the price rose, said Moinul Sheikh and Ferdous Hossain, two traders of the market. However, they said the price may decline soon after the import goes back to normal. Last week 25-30 trucks of Onion had been imported from India but this week it declined to 18-20 trucks , said Sohrab Hossain Mallik, PRO of Panama Hili Port, a private operator of the land port . He said, “On Thursday 571 MT of onion entered from India in 21 trucks and the import remained uninterrupted on Saturday.” Also read: Man held with 8 gold bars in Hili Harun-Ur-Rashid, president of the importer-exporter group of the port said,” As import has declined and onion price in India has increased, currently the price is a bit high in the market. It will lower with the escalation of imports.”

Export-import activities between Bangladesh and India through the Hili land port will remain suspended for six days from Monday on the occasion of Eid-ul-Azha, the second largest religious festival of Muslims. Read:No trade activities at Panchagarh border from July 12-30 Abdur Rahman Liton,  general secretary of Hili land port  C&F Agents association, said the authorities concerned of the port, export-import groups and C&F Agents association took the decision after a joint meeting in this regard, he said. “All activities of the port will resume from July 25,” he added.

Trucks carrying 112 metric tonnes of rice from India entered into Bangladesh through the Hili land port on Saturday afternoon.

Indian onion started to roll in at Dinajpur’s Hili land port on Saturday after three and half months of the export ban.

India recent condition for onion export through waterways has irked the traders at Hili land port.