4 importers involved in sugar price hike

Says JS body

23 August 2011, 18:00 PM

Staff Correspondent

Four largest sugar importers, Deshbandhu Sugar Mills Ltd, City Group, Meghna Group and S Alam Group, are directly involved in increasing of sugar price, a parliamentary body observed yesterday. The parliamentary standing committee on industries ministry said this four commodity importers had manipulated country's sugar market ahead of Ramadan. The body recommended that the ministry will take initiative to set up refinery equipment at different sugar mills run under the state-owned Bangladesh Sugar and Food Industries Corporation. “Chaotic situation is prevailing in the sugar market and the four private companies that control the commodity are acting behind it,” Tofail Ahmed, chief of the committee, told reporters emerging from the meeting at the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban. Tofail, a senior Awami League lawmaker, however did not elaborate to this end. The former industries minister said the past BNP-Jamaat government handed over the sugar industry to the private sector and 'anarchic situation' has been prevailing in the sugar market after the initiative. He said the past BNP government also allowed private companies to import and refine sugar resulting in monopoly in the sugar market by the syndicate of those companies. “We have recommended that the ministry will destroy the syndicate by importing sugar,” added Tofail.