By IANS,
Kolkata: With the prices of potato soaring, the West Bengalgovernment Saturday started selling the tuber from ration shops in the city and satellite town of Salt Lake.
“We have started selling potatoes from ration shops at Rs.12 per kg in Kolkata and Salt Lake as in the prices have steeply risen in these areas,” state Food and Supplies Minister Jyoti Priya Mallick told IANS.
Mallick said the shops were selling two kg of potatoes to every buyer.
“We will sell two kgs to a person per day,” he said.
Seven thousand bags of potatoes came to Kolkata yesterday (Friday) for this purpose, and another 7,000 would be coming Monday, he said.
The minister said the government would also sell lady’s finger, pointed gourd and green chilli from Sunday through the ration shops.
He alleged that prices of these vegetables have escalated following machinations of hoarders and middlemen.
Although the state is the second largest producer of potato in the country, this tuber was being sold at Rs.16 a kg in some of the major markets in Kolkata.