GUWAHATI: With the chorus against the rising prices of the essential commodities getting louder, Assam Chief Minister (CM) Sarbananda Sonowal directed his council of ministers to control the inflated price of vegetables and groceries in retail markets in the city.
“Price rise affects all, so it is my earnest appeal to everyone to work as #TeamAssam and find a way to resolve this issue at the earliest,” CM Sonowal tweeted.
Notably, CM Sonowal had a meeting with representatives of traders’ bodies and different department officials to discuss the price rise of essential items.
Sarbananda Sonowal called an urgent meeting to discuss the issue of price rise at the Assam Administrative Staff College in Guwahati.
The members of traders’ bodies informed that some items like potato, onion have seen the price hike at their source and assured that from Thursday onwards, wholesale prices would come down slightly.
In the meeting, CM Sonowal referred to the disparity in prices of items like potato, onion and vegetables in wholesale and retail markets and warned those traders engaged in abnormal price hike of essentials of strict action.
The chief minister took stock of the price rise situation from the members of Assam Chamber of Commerce, Kamrup Chamber of Commerce, and other traders’ bodies and asked for suggestions to control the rising prices of essential items.
He also said dedicated teams would be set up by the administration in the state to monitor the markets and keep a tab on the price rise of the essential items.
He instructed the supply department to generate awareness among the public about the right retail prices of vegetables by informing them about prices at the source.
Food and civil supplies minister Phani Bhushan Choudhury, agriculture minister Atul Bora, and several top officials were present in the meeting.