Following the Indian government’s decision to lift the export ban on onions, import activities through Dinajpur’s Hili land port have sprung back to life after a hiatus of five months.
The revival of imports was marked by the arrival of onion-laden trucks from India at 6:30 pm on Tuesday. Notably, “Ma Bharti International” of India exported 30 tons of onions, which were imported by RSD Enterprise of Bogra.
Ahmed Ali, representing the importers, highlighted the challenges posed by the Indian government’s imposition of a 40% export duty. Despite this hurdle, imported onions are priced at Tk65-70 per kg, which is comparable to or even lower than local market prices. Consequently, some individuals are hesitant about importing onions this time.
The import process incurs significant expenses, with importers like RSD Enterprise paying Tk5.45 lakh for importing five tons of onions, in addition to a Tk2 lakh duty to the Bangladesh government.
Sohrab Hossain, the public relations officer of Hili Land Port, affirmed the resumption of onion imports after a prolonged closure, emphasizing the need for swift customs processing due to the perishable nature of the goods.
India’s ban on onion exports, implemented on December 7 last year due to an onion crisis and escalating prices, had halted imports through Hili land port. However, with the ban lifted on May 4, 20 importers at Hili land port received permission to import 27,000 tons of onions, signaling a resurgence in trade activity.
