Srinagar: Ahead of the holy month of Ramadhan the traders in several parts of Kashmir have allegedly started selling essential commodities on exorbitant rates.
The move has left the consumers at the receiving end as the checking squads of the Food Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs (FCSCA) department are missing from the field in various districts.
The consumers complained that fruits that witness sharp increase in consumption during the month are being deliberately overpriced in various markets across Kashmir. Also the rates of other essential items have been hiked as well.
At the city-centre of Srinagar, Banana which and watermelons which are quite popular during Ramadhan have also witnessed a hike in violation of the government fixed rates.
The price of banana has been fixed as Rs 70 (Grade II) and Rs 80 (Grade I) which is arbitrarily sold at Rs 100 to the consumers.
Several consumers told Greater Kashmir that shopkeepers and vendors in their areas were selling vegetables at costly prices.
“There is no fixed rate-list for green vegetables and other eatables with shopkeepers as the rates vary on a day to day basis,” an aggrieved consumer told Greater Kashmir.
“It is quite strange that rate-lists for fruits and vegetables are fixed from time to time but do not get implemented on ground, leaving the consumers at the receiving end,” he said.
The consumers complained of “open loot” on markets alleging that the shopkeepers have been given free hand by the government for overpricing.
The FCSCA department had recently released a notified price list of chicken and mutton but these prices are being openly violated in the market.
While the department had fixed prices of broiler chicken at Rs 152 per kilogram, poultry shops across the Valley sell chicken between Rs 160-Rs 175.
Similarly, the price of mutton was fixed at Rs 490 per kilogram. Ironically, the mutton shops are selling mutton for almost between Rs 600 to Rs 630.
While the general public puts the blame on the FCSCA department for its failure to regulate the rate list in the market, the traders and shopkeepers said the eatables are sold at exorbitant rates by the suppliers and the wholesalers.
“The price of eatables needs to be regulated at the level of wholesalers and suppliers then only the inflation can go down. Otherwise the rate will shoot up putting the consumers at the receiving end,” said a shopkeeper from Baramulla.
Director FCSCA Kashmir Abdul Salam Mir when contacted said the enforcement wings were holding market inspections on a daily basis in the city and other districts to control the overpricing of essential commodities.
“You might have seen our checking squads sealed dozens of shops and imposed huge fines on shopkeepers who were selling essential items at exorbitant rates. We are trying our best to discourage illegal market inflation,” Mir told Greater Kashmir.
He said the market inspections will be intensified in all districts, particularly during the month of Ramadan to regulate the prices of eatables.
“Overpricing of fruits and vegetables will not be allowed at all,” he said.