Agartala, Nov 15 (UNI) With the sudden hike of vegetable price in local markets, Tripura
Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb advised civil supplies department to check the retail
market and regulate the whole sale market to edible items for bringing control of price
inflation.
According to sources, sky rocketing price of locally grown agricultural produces has
been reported to Chief Minister recently and he reportedly sought explanation from the
officials on the situation besides, personally verifying the price situation of the retail
market especially vegetable produces.
While addressing a gathering organised to celebrate Cooperative Week here yesterday
along with Agriculture and Farmer Welfare Minister Pranajit Singharoy, Deb asked the civil
supplies department to initiate inquiry against middlemen working in the retail market who
do not pay the due price to the farmers and cheating the consumers.
“The middlemen culture is grown due to improper intervention of the government for long
time. No democratically elected government can bypass their responsibility saying the
market is run by private individual. There is enough scope of intervention in the process of
trade and regulate the market for the benefit of both producers and consumers,” Deb
pointed out.
Most of the vegetable items are grown locally by the farmers but they cannot able to
reach in the retail market. They have been selling their produces at marginal profit in the
whole sale market but when the same produces brought to retail market in a short while
the price become double and triple due the involvement of middlemen in the process,
which needs to be erased, Chief Minister opined.
“Appropriate steps should be taken against the people who are intentionally hiking the
prices of vegetables and consumer items. There are some opportunists who are
interfering between the producer and the trader leading to excessive hike in the prices of
retail market. This practice has to be stopped immediately,” he stated and added his
government is very serious about it.
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