High prices of warm clothes have been putting pressure on the poor, leaving many of them to endure the bite of cold. During a visit, New Age found that, many shops, especially those on the footpaths, were open during the 83-hours BNP-led opposition blockade. Many people, mainly the low income group, thronged the footpath shops at Mohakhali, Gulistan, Bangabazar, Motijhil, Bangabandhu Stadium, Bangabandhu Avenue Hawkers Market, Dhaka College, New Market, Farmgate, Mirpur 10 and Azampur bus stand footpath shops in the capital.
The shopkeepers of those shops told New Age that in the previous year, the prices of locally-made shawls ranged between Tk 200 and Tk 400, blankets between Tk 300 and Tk 500, woollen sweaters between Tk 150 to Tk 300, winter caps between Tk 60 and Tk 100 while prices of local and Chinese jackets (second hand) ranged between Tk 200 and Tk 600.
However, this year the prices of locally-made shawls range from Tk 300 to Tk 600, blankets from Tk 400 to Tk 650, woollen sweaters from Tk 200 to Tk 500 while winter caps from Tk 100 to Tk 150.
Sharmin Begum, 35, a government grade three employee, told New Age on Monday that she had to come out to buy warm clothes for her children amid the current political turmoil, as her two children were suffering from severe fever.
‘I don’t know how I will buy two sweaters for my children, as they (shopkeepers) are charging a huge price,’ she said.
Some others also came to buy warm clothes during the blockade as they failed to buy clothes on Friday for price hike.
Anwar Hosain, a bus driver, claimed, ‘I came to the Gulistan area to buy jackets for me and my brother on Friday but could not make it as the shopkeepers charged at least three times of the normal prices.’
M Howladar said, ‘Last year I bought a second-hand woollen sweater for Tk 200 but this year the shopkeepers were charging two times — Tk 400.’
The shopkeepers also acknowledged it, saying that they could not make business this year because of the ongoing political situation, so they were charging increased prices from the customers.
‘We have to charge more from the customers as the number of customers is much lower than other years,’ said Jamil, a footpath shop owner at Mohakhali.
While Kibria Mohammad, another footpath shop owner, told New Age that sometime pickets burn and vandalise their shops as a result they have to make up their loss by charging extra from the customers.
He also said due to the blockade and strikes they could not go to the wholesale market to buy goods.
-With New Age input
