Hunt for OMS food grows desperate

In the bustling area of Mirpur-10 in the capital, over 300 people gathered early Monday morning, hoping to buy subsidised essentialsthat serve as a lifeline for low-income families.
Men, women, and children were waiting under the metro rail station, eagerly anticipating the arrival of a truck from the state-run Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB), scheduled to sell rice, lentils, edible oil and other essentials at prices much lower than the market rate.
With inflation staying above 9 percent for 20 consecutive months, the TCB programme offers low-income families an opportunity to secure food they can no longer afford.
As the clock approached 10:00am, the crowd swelled in anticipation of the truck’s arrival.
However, a truck finally became visible at 11:49am. Relief seemed imminent, and the customers began to queue up, some shoved each other to secure their spots.
But the truck did not stop at the location. People ran after it, chasing it as far as they could, but to no avail.
“I’ve been waiting here since 7:00am, and still, I am empty-handed. How long can I stand at my age?” said 70-year-old Jahanara Begum, who ran after the truck.
“I can’t keep standing any longer. There’ll be no cooking at home,” she added, leaving the spot in utter frustration.
As midday sunlight intensified, making it difficult to stand in the open, a fresh rumour of the truck’s imminent arrival sparked a frenzy. People hurried to form new lines, with some losing their temper.
Among those waiting were two pregnant women who had walked from Mirpur-6, a half-hour journey on foot.
Finally, at 12:52pm, the TCB truck arrived.
“I came here around 9:00am but was able to buy the goods only at 1:16pm,” a sweating Khairun Nahar told The Daily Star.
The 44-year-old woman had left her home in Mirpur-14 at 8:00am to queue up for the subsidised products for the first time. “It is tough to run the family with my husband’s Tk 25,000 income,” she said. Her husband, the sole breadwinner, is a salesman at a shoe store.
Nahar narrated her ordeal in walking from Mirpur-10 to Mirpur-11.5 to see if another TCB truck arrived there. She eventually returned to the previous location as there was no TCB truck at Mirpur-11.5.
While Jahanara was unable to get the food, Nahar managed to purchase five kg of rice for Tk 150, 2 litres of soybean oil for Tk 200, and 2 kg of lentils for Tk 120 — approximately Tk 385 cheaper than the retail market.
According to TCB data on November 18, soybean oil was priced at Tk 167 to Tk 170 per litre, lentils at Tk 105 to Tk 135 per kg and medium quality rice at Tk 59 to Tk 65 per kg.
Like Nahar, thousands of low-income people in the city scramble for essentials at TCB truck sales points and Open Market Sale (OMS) shops, operated under the food ministry, often returning home empty-handed due to a scarcity or late arrival of the goods.
“Usually, we can sell to about 350 people a day, but nearly 700 people gather at this spot daily,” said a TCB goods seller, who preferred anonymity.
“There has been immense pressure from the customers in recent months,” he added.
At another TCB spot near Bangladesh Betar in Agargaon, the wait was as chaotic as that in Mirpur-10.
“I never stood in a TCB line before, but the situation has forced me to come here,” said Mohammad Himu, 40, a ride-hailing driver.
“I also know some people in this queue who typically maintain a middle-class lifestyle but are now buying subsidised products,” he added.
At an OMS shop near Agargaon Colony, Jhorna Begum received 10 kg of food grains after waiting for six long hours from 7am.
“Now, I must hurry back as I am already late,” said the housemaid who had to skip her work in the morning for the food.   
“All food items are becoming costlier. I come here to save some money as I always struggle to decide which product to cut from the menu,” added the mother of three.
Her husband is an electrician, and she earns Tk 6,000 per month working as a housemaid in six houses.
The OMS shop also drew a huge crowd as it was selling flour at Tk 25 per kg and rice at Tk 30 per kg, much lower than the current market prices.
The visibly irritated customers were sometimes leaving the queues to rest under a shed. People at the front of the lines were scrambling in such a disorderly way that a woman got all covered in flour as her bag leaked.
According to a recent report by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, released by international agencies, including the United Nations, nearly 23.3 million people, or 26 percent of Bangladesh’s population, are experiencing high levels of acute food insecurity.
Professor M Abu Eusuf of Dhaka University’s development studies department pointed out that many people are forced to waste their working hours in TCB and OMS queues.
High inflation has forced many new families into poverty, and expanding these programmes would provide some relief, he told this newspaper.
“The one crore family cards are supposed to cover all the poor people according to government data. But it does not work at all.”
Prof Eusuf called for the removal of inclusion errors and the creation of a proper database through automation. He also suggested expanding the city-centric programmes in rural areas, where food inflation has been higher. 
“Amid such elevated inflation, the coverage of existing food-related programmes must be expanded across the country,” he said.
He stressed the need to strengthen market monitoring and management, and bring accountability to reduce price manipulation by middlemen.
In July this year, food inflation hit 13-year high, crossing 14 percent, according to the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics. The 12-month average inflation reached a double-digit figure in October, indicating significant pressure on consumers.
To help the families combat high inflation, TCB now sells subsidised products from 70 trucks in Dhaka and Chattogram five days a week, while the food ministry operates 964 OMS shops nationwide, including 110 in the capital.
These programmes are run beside the programme known as the family card scheme, under which the government provides subsidised products to one crore families each month.
The government has also included agricultural items in the OMS programme, with 30 sales points across Dhaka city.
To rein in rising prices, the Bangladesh Bank has adopted a contractionary monetary policy and raised interest rates. The government has also taken fiscal measures, including reducing tariffs on essential items such as onions, potatoes, sugar, and eggs.
In November 2023, the food ministry distributed 12.01 lakh tonnes of food grains among poor and low-income people through cash and non-cash programmes, including distribution among public sector employees.
As of November 14 this year, it has distributed 11.67 lakh tonnes of food grains, including 9.32 lakh tonnes of rice and 2.34 lakh tonnes of wheat.