Shopkeepers in Srinagar markets have increased vegetables, fruit prices by their will raising eye brows from the public.
According to consumers prices of kitchen staple like potato, tomato, pea, cauliflower and onion have been increased by 20-50% due to short supply from outside the valley.
Junaid Ahmad, who was purchasing onions at Amira Kadal said that shopkeepers are taking the advantage and are increasing the rates by their own.
He said there has been tremendous increase in rates from past 7-8 days but the concerned authorities have failed to check the markets.
Abdul Rashid, who sells vegetables at Batamaloo, said that because of rains and snowfall, the supply of vegetables has abruptly decreased causing price spike.
“We usually take vegetables from the Parimpora fruit mandi but vegetable merchants have increased the rates from 10 -15%. We are forced to sell the vegetable at higher prices to recover our costs.” he said.
Another local customer Ali Mohammad Rather said that the government has no regular checking squads in markets that are why we are facing hike in daily essentials every year.
“There are no rate lists with the vegetable sellers. They have also hiked the prices of locally grown vegetables like Nadru, turnip, radish etc while the administration watching it as mute spectators.”
A senior official at the Food Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs (FCS&CA) said that the department is suffering manpower shortage.
The official said that there are only 16-18 persons in the enforcement team including which is very less as per area. The department is yet to get proper uniform and how it would be the possible to them to check every nook and corner of the city.
While seeking cooperation from the public the official said that consumers should come forward and help us to identity the offenders.(JKNS)