Govt’s initiatives help curb veggie prices

Kolkata: The steps taken by the state government, particularly the increase of Sufal Bangla outlets have been instrumental in curbing the price of vegetables, to some extent, during the ongoing festive season. An adequate supply of potatoes to the market was ensured and this resulted in potato prices hovering around Rs 30-32 per kg in retail markets in the city.

The price in some of the districts was around Rs 27 per kg. 19 lakh metric tonnes of potatoes are still in the cold storage and before the new potatoes hit the market, it will suffice

for the state.

The Sufal Bangla purchased ‘Sukhsagar’ variety of onion directly from the farmers at Rs 40 per kg and sold them at the same price from the Sufal Bangla outlets. The state reduced imports from Nashik and has purchased over 200 tonnes of onion directly from the farmers. Chilli and tomatoes that are imported from other states were sold at a lesser price of 10 to 15 per cent from the Sufal Bangla outlets and various temporary purchase centres opened in districts. The task force conducted regular raids in different markets to regulate the prices of vegetables and maintain parity of prices in the wholesale and retail markets.

The state government will continue their efforts to regulate the price at least till the winter vegetables foray into the market and the price stabilises.