Telangana sits on Rs 300 crore fund to curb prices of essential commodities

Hyderabad: The prices of all essential commodities have increased exponentially within a month affecting  people from middle and lower income groups but there has been no initiative from the state government to control the prices. The market intervention fund of Rs 300 crore is lying unutilised. Moreover, the price monitoring committee failed to meet even once this year to take stock of the spiralling prices.

The government is supposed to utilise market intervention fund to procure essential commodities and vegetables from other states and supply them to consumers for affordable rates through rythu bazaars and special counters. The government had constituted a Price Monitoring Committee headed by chief secretary last year after onion and pulses prices skyrocketed.

The committee is supposed to meet periodically and take up measures to control prices. The departments of civil supplies and marketing, which have to coordinate regularly on controlling prices have also remained mute spectators. Officials of both these departments are waiting for the instructions from civil supplies minister Etela Rajender and marketing minister T. Harish Rao in this regard.

Officials say both these ministers hardly find time to convene meetings to focus on price issue as they are pre-occupied with finance and irrigation issues. Mr Rao asked officials to convene a joint meeting of price monitoring committee, civil supplies and marketing officials next week to take stock of rising prices of essential commodities. “Last year, we could successfully control the prices of onions and pulses by utilising funds available with market intervention fund. Large quantity of stocks were procured from other states and supplied through rythu bazaars and special counters for affordable rates. The same policy will be adopted this time. “Our immediate priority is to reduce the prices of vegetables, especially tomatoes besides rice and pulses,” Mr Rao said.

Tomatoes from U.P., Rajasthan arrive
For the first time, tomatoes are being procured from states of Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan to control prices. Although, tomato prices have almost doubled, the increase was dampened due to the imports. According to traders, there was no tomato crop here due to drought conditions. Nearly 20 lorries carrying tomatoes are arriving  at Bowenpally market every day.