Customers believe a lack of strong government monitoring is to blame for the rising prices of commodities.

Prices of bottled soybean oil of some brands have gone up to Tk 115 per litre, increasing twice in a month.

He will charge the customers the new rates once the dealers of the companies bring the new products Saturday.

Khurshed Alam, a retailer at Mohakhali, said he received the new products and began selling them at the new rates.

“People in the government work hard when the media writes about the price hike. But we don’t see strong monitoring by the government,” said customer Sarwar Hossain, who resides in Malibagh.

All the companies took approval of the Bangladesh Tariff Commission before raising the prices, he claimed.

In the rice market, coarse Swarna, the cheapest in Dhaka, was being sold at Tk 50 per kg.

The fine quality Miniket rice was priced between Tk 62 and Tk 65 a kg.

Ali Ahsan, the proprietor of Bikrampur Rice Store at Rampura, said prices of coarse varieties of rice have increased more than the fine ones.

“The millers have told us that that paddy price hike has driven rice prices,” Ahsan said.

“But sitting here we can’t say what has exactly happened,” he added.

Wahiduzzaman, a wholesaler at Mirpur-1, said the millers were manipulating the market having bought paddy from the farmers at lower rates much earlier.