To counter growing inflation, the state government has decided to sell foodgrains at cheaper rates in the open market. A quota of 54,000 metric tonnes of wheat and 381 metric tonnes of rice was released in the open market in cities including Bhopal, Indore, Ujjain, Gwalior and Jabalpur.
Initially, the government will put commodities like wheat and rice at private dealers and super markets from 12 of this month from Bhopal and Jabalpur. Later other commodities will also be included in the list.
Wheat will be sold at Rs 13.50 per kg while rice will be sold at Rs 17.40 per kilogram at private dealers, retailers and other supermarkets. So far cheaper wheat and rice are being sold through public distribution shops (PDS). “The government will sell rice and wheat initially and later other commodities like pulses and lintels will also be included,” said a government official in food and civil supplies department.
The commodities will be sold from 5 kg to 50 kg packets. “The sale will be in addition to the PDS system in urban and rural areas,” the official added. However, it is not clear how the government will monitor the sale of wheat with a cap of 50 kg maximum per person. According to the official, “This is a pilot project and the commodities will be sold at state food civil supplies corporation warehouses and state cooperative superstores namely Priyadarshini. If successful, it will be implemented in other towns of the state to check the growing inflation.”
To ensure proper mechanism of foodgrains distribution through PDS, the state government has launched an e-governance scheme to facilitate consumers, particularly in rural areas. Any citizen can send an SMS on a particular mobile number (normally the district collector) and can report if the fair price shop dealer is missing. “It is working effectively and as and when I receive complaint, I ensure its immediate redressal,” said Mukesh Gupta, district collector, Guna.