Cabinet seeks comprehensive report on price hikes from ministries
The prime minister will announce the inauguration date of the Padma Bridge within the next two-three days, said the cabinet secretary
Highlights:
- The Cabinet Division asked the finance and commerce ministries to submit comprehensive reports on price hike within the next two-three days
- The government will take measures to control the price hike based on those reports
- The Cabinet approved drafts of Hat Bazar (Establishment and Management) Law 2022, Land Development Tax Law 2022, Land Reform Law 2022 and National Mental Health Policy, Bangladesh 2022
The Cabinet Division has asked the finance and commerce ministries to submit comprehensive reports on price hike after monitoring and evaluating the existing prices of essentials within the next two-three days.
The government will take measures to control the price hike based on those reports, said Cabinet Secretary Khandker Anwarul Islam at a press briefing at the secretariat after a Cabinet meeting yesterday.
"We will discourage the import of unnecessary products like fruits and fancy items. We will increase or decrease tax on some selected products after getting reports from the ministries," he said.
This measure will aim at increasing the demand for locally produced fruits and other products, and decreasing the dependence on imported goods.
The cabinet secretary also said the World Bank has decided to lend Bangladesh $940 million for developing the country's health sector.
"The World Bank is happy with our fight against the Covid-19 pandemic. They have decided to give us the loan after seeing the Bangladesh government's success in Covid-19 crisis management," the cabinet secretary said.
Prime minister to finalise Padma Bridge name soon
Asked about the inauguration of the much-awaited Padma Bridge, the secretary said the prime minister will inform the nation about the inauguration ceremony within the next five-six days.
"We expect that the prime minister will be able to inaugurate the bridge any day in the last week of June. We can prepare the bridge for use by the mass people before the inauguration ceremony," he added.
Regarding the name of the bridge, the cabinet secretary said, "Earlier the prime minister told us several times that the name of the bridge will be 'Padma Bridge.' I believe she will also clear the matter soon."
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the construction of the 6.15-km Padma multipurpose bridge at Jajira point in Shariatpur district in December 2015.
The government is building the Padma Bridge – the country's largest infrastructure – with its own fund of Tk30,000 crore.
On completion of the project, nearly six crore people in 19 southern districts will be connected with the rest of the country, including the capital Dhaka.
Assuming office in 1996, the Awami League government initiated the project in 1998 for the first time. After returning to power in 2009, it revived the initiative. The World Bank initially proposed funding much of the project, but Bangladesh withdrew the funding request after the global lender raised a stink over alleged corruption.
In 2014, the government signed contracts with the two Chinese companies for the construction of the main bridge and the river training work.
3 draft laws approved
Yesterday, the cabinet also approved drafts of Hat Bazar (Establishment and Management) Law 2022, Land Development Tax Law 2022, Land Reform Law 2022 and National Mental Health Policy, Bangladesh 2022.
According to the draft of Hat Bazar (Establishment and Management) Law 2022, permission from the local administration will be necessary for establishing hat-bazar. If anyone ignores the law, he or she will be fined TK5 lakh or one year jail.
According to the Land Reform Law 2022, a person will be allowed to own a maximum 60 bighas of land. The law will not be applicable to land used for agriculture or export-oriented agricultural industry.
