Bangladesh’s cabinet approved a proposal to waive import duties and taxes on green chilies and tomatoes at a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman on Monday. A cabinet press release, reported on August 17, 2026, said the measure aims to reduce prices of the two essential agricultural products and ensure uninterrupted market supply.

Under the proposal, the total tax burden will be reduced from 61 percent to 20.5 percent during the first month after issuance of the notification, and to 31 percent in the following month. The release cited seasonal production patterns, natural disasters, adverse weather, supply disruptions and production shortfalls as factors that can cause unusually high market prices and add financial pressure on consumers.

The cabinet also approved a draft law to abolish the existing Rapid Action Battalion law and establish a Special Response Battalion, or SRB, under the police force. It further decided to treat fiscal year 2027-28 as a nine-month transitional fiscal year, from July to March, before shifting government operations to an April-March fiscal year from 2028-29.