Bangladesh News

For the last few months, Abidur Rahman, breadwinner in a four-member family, was struggling hard to make ends meet as the prices of everything continued skyrocketing.

He was left with a hope that the new budget would somehow remove the pressure off his shoulder. On the budget day yesterday, he was patiently sitting before the TV set to hear the finance adviser’s speech.

The budget speech however came as an utter frustration for him as there was only one “cut” to be enjoyed by Rahman, a private service holder, representing millions of fixed-income middle class people.

He nearly went bonkers to hear that the price of dates would go down in the holy month of Ramadan as the government withdrew 20 percent supplementary tax on it.

Expenses are increasing every day but not the income. The government has “considered” the hardship of civil servants and allocated 20 percent dearness allowance for them. But the private companies like the one he was serving have yet to take any steps like that.

Rahman became gloomy as fragments of tomorrows’ images began to haunt him.

With no mood left to watch the state-run BTV, he started surfing the channels. But it reminded him of extra cost as the government would increase supplementary duty from 15 percent to 35 percent for the satellite channel distributors.

This year the prices of rice and other grocery items have shot up, and so have other expenses including house rent, rickshaw fares, children’s tuition fees, prices of books, paper, and of what not. But the new budget could not bring him any solace.

He switched off the television and intended to go out.

His son, an English medium school student, asked him to buy some new books as the academic session is going to start next month. It came as more discomfort for Rahman, who just heard the finance adviser announcing 25 percent customs duty instead of 10 percent on pictorial books and drawing books.

Since last January, he was thinking of transferring his son from English medium school to a Bangla medium one due to high expenses.

Now he was determined to do it in the next session, as the government was going to impose new taxes on imported books mostly used for students of English medium schools to promote local culture and values.

Rahman asked his domestic help to shut the door and went outside just to have an aimless ride on his motorcycle.

While riding the bike, he tried to figure out how much his family expenses shot up in last six months. In addition to the essentials from the kitchen markets, the house rent increased by Tk 800 three months ago. Fares of rickshaw, bus, CNG-run three-wheelers and taxicab — all increased during this time.

Rahman’s eyebrows knitted together in a clearly visible frown as he turned towards the food and meal prices.

At restaurants, each parata earlier was sold at Tk 3 and now the price rose to Tk 5 per piece. One packet of biscuits was Tk 10, and now it cost Tk 14, while the price of one kilogram beef rose to around Tk 200 from Tk 180.

He stopped at a roadside vendor to buy cigarettes and betel leaf with aromatic chewing tobacco. This time he was not surprised to hear that the seller was asking Tk 6 for a cigarette he bought at Tk 4 in the morning.

Within an hour of proposing extra duty on raw tobacco, prices of betel leaf and cigarettes have increased.

“The price of cigarettes may be doubled,” the trader tried to assure him.

Puffing the cigarette, he promised this was his last one; otherwise he would have to count about Tk 1,000 extra per month.

Finally, he stopped for refuelling and tried to comfort himself that at least the price of fuel did not increase in the new budget.

“Don’t be so happy,” the station staff told him, reminding him of a possible increase any moment as the price of fuel is shooting up in the international market.