Airfare of 1kg onion costs Tk150: Commerce minister

The government had to pay Tk150 airfare on each kilogram of onion import, Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi has said.

"Excluding other costs, we are paying Tk150 as airfare on each kilogram of onion import. Despite this additional expense, we are still importing onions by air," the minister said at a seminar organised by the Bangladesh Competition Commission at TSB Bhaban in the capital today.

Blaming onion traders for the price hike, Tipu Munshi said the price of the cooking ingredient doubled on the evening of September 29 after India had imposed a ban on its onion export.

Traders took the opportunity and contributed to the price hike, the minister said.