Wholesalers in Dhaka stockpile vegetables for eye-popping profits from price gouging

Wholesalers in Dhaka’s Karwan Bazar have stockpiled vegetables with the hope that an ongoing transport strike will hamper supplies leading to a price spike while some retailers have already raised prices.

More vegetables than the usual supply arrived in the market on Tuesday night ahead of the strike called by the Bangladesh Truck Covered-van Goods Transport Owners Workers Unity Council from Wednesday.

Wholesale prices, however, remained unchanged on Wednesday amid the strike for amendments to the Road Transport Act, which came into effect earlier this month with harsher punishment of drivers for violation of traffic rules and road traffic accidents.

Additional stocks of bean, white gourd, aubergine, cucumber, radish and other vegetables were visible in the wholesale shops.

“But the wholesalers did not release the stocks of radish today. They are hoping to make extra profits tomorrow,” retailer Shafiqul Islam told bdnews24.com.

Wholesaler Hanif Bepari said vegetable prices might go up on Thursday as “fewer” trucks than those of Tuesday night would arrive in Dhaka on Wednesday night due to the strike.

Those transporting goods were also asking for extra money as they ran the risk of confronting the protesters on the way, he added.

But retailers at the kitchen markets in different areas have already raised vegetable prices on the excuse of the transport strike.

“Prices have gone up slightly as the transport strike has hit supply,” Abul Kashem, a vendor at Mohakhali, said.