Potato prices to go down soon, informs task force

Kolkata: The task force constituted by the state government to monitor the price of essential commodities, assured on Sunday that price of potatoes will drop to Rs 15 per kg within a week. A report has been submitted to the Chief Minister in this regard.

Rabindranath Koley, a member of the task force, said that new Jyoti potatoes from Burdwan and Hooghly will soon enter the markets in the city and the price may drop to Rs 15/kg. Potatoes which are currently sold in various markets are mainly coming from Bankura and Purulia.

"New Jyoti potatoes are expected to come to the city markets next week. As a result the people in the city will be able to buy the potatoes at a much cheaper price. The price of potatoes has gone down considerably in the past few days. It will go down further," Koley said.

The prices of potatoes and other vegetables normally go down during the winter but this season the price of potatoes is a little higher. The old stock will soon be finished at all the local markets.

The potatoes available in the markets are sold at a price between Rs 22-25 per kg, while in some markets, price has gone up to Rs 32 per kg.

It has also been learnt that the task force has already sent a report to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, giving the details of price of potatoes and other commodities. Banerjee had formed the task force to control the price of various essential commodities.