The state-owned Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) will resume sales of subsidised essentials among the low-income people on Saturday, ending a more than two-month break.

TCB announced the resumption in a statement on Friday, but added that no trucks will sell goods in the Dhaka city, in a break from tradition. Sixty-one trucks will operate in different districts every day, except Fridays, until the end of the month, it said.

Under the interim government, TCB has sold products on a regular basis among eligible insolvent family card owners, while also conducted truck-based sales among non-registered beneficiaries on special occasions like the Ramadan, and Eid-ul-Azha.

However, due to high inflationary pressures on low-income households, truck sales continued till 13 September, irrespective of occasions. Afterwards it remained suspended due to financial constraints.

Essentials to be sold

Under the resumed initiative, every day, a non-registered low-income person can purchase maximum two-litre soybean oil at a rate of Tk115 per litre, one-kilogram sugar for Tk80 and two-kilogram lentils for Tk70 per kilogram.

The prices are significantly lower than the market rates: soybean oil costs at least Tk190 per litre, sugar Tk140 per kg, and lentil Tk160 per kg.

Each truck would sell to 500 households every day for 14 days until 30 November.

Meanwhile, sales to around 60 lakh "digital family card" owners are continuing. Five lakh more are set to get the cards after verification as the government tries to bring total one crore poor households under the continuous affordable sales programme.