Online desk: The government has approved a proposal for buying 1.65 crore liters of soybean oil and 8,000 metric tons of red lentil for the state-owned Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) for  its ongoing open market sale (OMS) programme.

The Cabinet Committee on Government Purchase (CCGP) approved three separate proposals in its meeting on Wednesday. Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal chaired the meeting.

Import of 90,000 MT of fertiliser also received approval of the committee.

Officials said the purchase of soybean oil and red lentils by  TCB is part of its move to run the ongoing OMS operation to sell some essential produces at subsidised rates for the low-income group.

Earlier, the CCGP gave nods to similar proposals placed by the Commerce Ministry on behalf of the TCB. The TCB is a subsidiary body of the Commerce Ministry.

As per the proposals, the TCB will procure 1.10 crore liters of soybean oil from local Meghna Edible Oil Refinery Limited at a cost of Tk 189.03 crore with each liter costing Tk 171.85, down from previous rate of Tk 185 per liter.

It will purchase 55 lakh liters of soybean oil from local Super Oil Refinery Limited at Tk 87.97 crore, with each liter costing 156.95 per liter, down from previous Tk 185 per liter.

The TCB will procure some 8,000 metric tons of red lentil from a Turkish firm at a cost of Tk 70.98 crore, with each kilogram Tk 88.73, down from Tk 110 per kg.

The CCGP also approved two proposals of the Agriculture Ministry to import a total of 90,000 metric tons of fertiliser from abroad under state-level agreements.

As per the proposals, the Bangladesh Agriculture Development Corporation (BADC) will import 50,000 metric tons of MOP fertiliser from Canadian Commercial Corporation at Tk 437.05 crore and 40,000 MT of DAP fertiliser from OCP, SA of Morocco at a cost of Tk 302.37 crore.