Fruit sellers on Kemal Ataturk Avenue in Banani have been found selling guavas at Tk 200 per kg, whereas the usual price for guavas in Dhaka city is Tk 80 per kg.

This correspondent went to three shops in the area today and found all three were selling the readily available fruit at a much higher price.

Asked why they are selling the fruit nearly three times of the market price, Mujibur Rahman of Habib Fruits said they are selling the best guavas We are selling the "Thai variety" of the fruit. We have handpicked, cleaned, and wrapped the best ones in transparent foil paper for the customers, he added.

Photo: Shaheen Mollah/Star

Two more shops were also selling the same guavas for Tk 200 per kilo. The owners of those shops, however, said those were regular guavas from the market.

Because they were separated from the rest and categorised as best of the best, they were priced at Tk 200, they added.

A trader at Karwan Bazar said there are no "extraordinary" guavas in the market. The current wholesale price of guavas is Tk 50-60 per kg. They are usually sold in the retail market at Tk 70-80.

Even if a seller picks the best guavas from the lot and sells them, they are sold for Tk 80 per kg, he added.