In the month of restraint, shoppers are generally intemperate; Sellers are reckless. Among these are regulatory authorities or governments in symbolic functions. People are busy showing off rather than focusing on market management. Since the beginning of Ramadan, mobile courts have been run by the administration in various parts of the country, but they are actually public shows. After visiting certain shops, the responsibility is to publish the report in the media in the press release or through acquaintances. As a result, the problem remains where it was.
While walking around the market, I saw a mobile court operation yesterday. I saw the Executive Magistrate leading a group in front of a fruit shop. His primary and only goal in going to the fruit shop is the price of dates. As if dates are the problem of consumers. But it is not an essential product of people. If Industries Minister Nurul Majid Humayun had not commented on the presence of dates in Iftar, perhaps there would not have been so much talk about dates in the country. Not only the Minister of Industry but also some other Ministers and State Ministers have opposed this date. As a result, the importance of dates has suddenly increased in social media and mass media. But this date was not so popular in the country. People thought little about eating or not eating these dates.
This date-loving of the Executive Magistrates is not going against the consumers. It remains as a public display only. Their campaigns seem to be aimed at getting media coverage, social media. But they also know that these dates are not a product for daily consumption by people. Because it was discussed in the minister's uncontrolled speech, a section of people got the opportunity to promote it as 'sunnah' on social media. Dates are nothing but a luxury for lakhs of people in the country where they do not have food resources.
In addition to dates, Executive Magistrates from various parts of the country are inclined towards watermelons. It is viral news that sold by kg or piece, and at what price dates were sold in the presence of the Magistrate. This kind of news has Facebook-users, so all eyes are on it. But it is also not a necessary product of human survival. However, the tendency of the media here, the tendency of the mobile court!
Before the start of Ramadan, we have heard from Ministers about price control. But at the end of the day a huge ‘horse ovum’ was seen. As before, the government has no control over the market. Consumers have to buy products at the same price as before and at higher prices than before. In a notification signed by Director General of Agriculture Marketing Department Masood Karim on March 15, the 'reasonable price' of 29 agricultural products, including fish and meat, was determined. There was no impact on the market even after the two days of fixing the price. No one obeyed the instructions. Many people do not know about the instructions given by the government. Meanwhile, the government is not interested in promoting this directive. The government has abdicated the responsibility with a public announcement. This is a big farce with the consumer, with the crowd!
Talking about the mobile court, the media is also reporting raids and fines. These are still symbolic campaigns because it is not possible to manage the market of the whole country by raiding five-seven or fewer shops in the district or upazila city? Apart from the district and upazila cities, there are lakhs of bazaars in the country, all of them are not controlled. There is a constant crowd of consumers in those places. The operations of the Executive Magistrates are again city-centered, but the majority of consumers are not from the city-centre, but from the marginal market. As a result, despite fixing the price, there should be no effect. After the price was fixed, the promotion was not as necessary. Besides, there is a belief among consumers and traders that the administration will not reach out to them. As a result the market is unregulated.
There is also disagreement between suddenly fixing the prices of 29 daily products without giving any indication. Do all traders trade daily? Retailers do not. Retailers buy high, sell high -- there is a claim. Although this claim is not entirely true, it is not false. Market conditions would not have reached such a level even if there were indications that commodity prices were being fixed. In this opportunity, whoever wants to take the price, is taking. By setting such prices before Ramadan and promoting them extensively, dishonest traders would not have taken the opportunity to 'cut people's throats'.
From long experience we have seen that the prices of goods go up and do not go down. The price of some daily products including rice-pulses-soybean-onion is discussed, and on this occasion the price of all other products that are not discussed skyrocket. Pepper, Turmeric, Bakhar, Soap, Detergent Powder, Tea, Sugar, Milk--Which products are under price control? None of them have. No one knows who increases the price of these products, how it is increased, no one even talks about it. The result is a truly unregulated market.
When the market conditions are beyond the control of the people, the Executive Magistrates of the Mobile Court stage plays with dates, watermelons and fruits. Dates and watermelons have a Facebook audience, but no consumers. In the struggle for survival, where rice and pulses are out of affordability, there are dates and watermelons?