TDS Desk:

Finance and Planning Adviser Salehuddin Ahmed on Wednesday said that it will not take ages to reduce inflation; rather, it will come down within a reasonable time.

He also mentioned that inflation has already decreased slightly.

He was speaking on Wednesday after a review meeting on inflation and the food supply situation held at the Secretariat.

Adviser Salehuddin Ahmed said that the supply chain would be fixed, and there would be coordination between monetary policy and fiscal policy.

He added that everything would be transparent, and nothing would be kept secret as was done before.

However, he emphasized the need to prevent the wastage of funds and ensure their proper use.

The adviser also encouraged everyone present at the meeting to speak freely without fear, stating that there is no need for flattery. He even mentioned that there is no need to say that the adviser is a good person.

Bangladesh Bank Governor Ahsan H Mansur said that inflation would come down to an acceptable level within the next five to six months.

He also noted that the reserve crisis will not be resolved overnight and will need to be carefully managed.

He mentioned that they are assessing how much dollars can be allocated for imports and that discussions will also be held with development partners.

In response to a question about the formation of a banking commission, the new Governor stated that this issue was not discussed in today’s meeting.

The meeting was attended by Finance Secretary Md Khairuzzaman Majumdar, Commerce Secretary Md Selim Uddin, Chairman of the Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission Ahmed Muniruch Saleheen, Industry Secretary Zakia Sultana, Food Secretary Ismail Hossain, and two Deputy Governors of Bangladesh Bank, Habibur Rahman and Nurun Nahar.