NBR removes customs duty on yellow peas

The National Board of Revenue (NBR) has removed customs duty on yellow peas in order to allow importers to bring the essential commodity without facing hassles from customs.

Officials and importers said import of peas were exempted from customs duty. However, 5 per cent import duty had been kept unchanged unintentionally creating disputes with importers.

"That is why, we have exempted the duty so that no ambiguity arises," said a senior official of the NBR.

Bangladesh annually imports nearly 6 lakh tonnes of peas, including yellow peas, as domestic production was insignificant. Annual cultivation of peas locally known as 'Anchor dal' has been hovering around 18,000 acres over the last three years. Production has been stagnant at 7,000 tonnes, according to data by Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS).

At present, 5 per cent advance income tax is applied on peas, imported mainly from Canada and Russia, said importers.

Abul Bashar Chowdhury, chairman of Chattogram-based BSM Group, one of the leading commodity importer, said the withdrawal of customs duty on yellow peas will remove misunderstanding between importers and revenue officials.

Yesterday, retail prices of yellow peas were Tk 38-45 per kilogram, 11 per cent higher year-on-year, according to data compiled by the Trading Corporation of Bangladesh.