Market will no longer be controlled by syndicates: Commerce Minister

Commerce Minister Khandaker Abdul Muktadir has said that the market in Bangladesh will no longer be controlled through syndicates.

“We will erase the notion that markets are controlled through syndicates,” he said while speaking at the inauguration of the country’s first direct farmers’ sales centre, ‘Krishoker Haat’, in Sylhet’s Tilagor area on Saturday (April 11).

The initiative was jointly launched by the district administration and the Department of Agricultural Extension.

Officials said the farmers’ market has been introduced to reduce the influence of middlemen and syndicates, allowing producers to sell their goods directly to consumers.

Speaking at the event, the minister said the government plans to integrate the country’s supply chain into an AI-based monitoring system to stabilise imported and essential goods markets.

He also said the Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) programme would be expanded further, while government subsidies of around Tk 3,200–3,300 crore allocated annually for TCB operations would be reduced gradually alongside increased efficiency.

The minister added that district administrations across the country would be instructed to ensure farmers can directly sell their produce to consumers at least one day a week.

He further announced that Prime Minister Tarique Rahman is scheduled to inaugurate the excavation of the Banshia canal in Sylhet on May 2.

According to the Sylhet district administration, the ‘Krishoker Haat’ has been introduced as a pilot initiative to curb the dominance of intermediaries in agricultural markets.

Officials said the market will operate daily at a designated spot in Tilagor Point, where local farmers can sell their produce directly to consumers without middlemen.

They added that the initiative aims to shorten the supply chain between farmers and consumers, ensuring fair prices for producers while providing fresh produce to buyers at lower costs.

At present, agricultural products often pass through four to five intermediaries before reaching consumers, driving up prices while farmers receive a limited share of profits. The new initiative is expected to reduce such inefficiencies and improve price fairness for both producers and consumers.