In a bid to arrest spiralling prices of edible oil in the state, the Gujarat government on Thursday imposed stock limit on edible oil and oil seeds with immediate effect.
In case of oilseed, the stock limit is kept at 2000 quintals (a quintal is 100 kg) for wholesale stockists and 100 quintals for retail traders. As per the notification issued by the state government on Thursday, wholesale edible oil traders can now store up to 600 quintals or 4,000 tins (a tin of 15 litres) of edible oils, while the limit for retail edible oil traders is set at 45 quintals or 300 tins.
The oil millers can now store raw materials equivalent to meet their requirements of two months or one sixth of their annual raw material requirements.
As far as the end product (of edible oil) is concerned, the stock limit is set at one twelfth of their annual requirement of stock.
"Improper policies of the central government has led to this situation (of price rise). Central government's ban on cotton export has caused huge loss to the farmers in Gujarat. This has also stalled the ginning and crushing activity, due to which oil prices are going up," Narottam Patel, minister for civil supplies, Government of Gujarat informed in an official statement.
The government has exempted farmers from any restrictions on stocks.
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The state government's move of limiting stock of oilseeds and edible oils has come in the wake of groundnut oil prices touching Rs 2,100 per tin of 15 litres, almost double than last year.
The minister also informed that the state government would not hesitate to use Prevention of Black marketing and Maintenance of Supplies of Essential Commodities Act, 1980 (PBM Act) against those who violate the provisions in the notification.
Besides imposition of stock limit, the state government has also decided to procure 12,000 tonnes of palmolein to distribute among the BPL families and state government schemes for poor at the time of festivals. The minister also mentioned that the state government would procure additional 6,000 tonnes of edible oils to safeguard the poor from escalating oil prices.
According to him, the civil supplies corporation department might be given the powers to seize the additional stock.
Meanwhile, the leader of opposition, Shaktisinh Gohil criticised Gujarat government for not controlling rising prices of edible oils and gas.
"The state chief minister is in league with oil millers, hence there is not a single raid on these millers, who are artificially jacking up prices by stock piling huge stocks," said Gohil in a statement issued on Thursday.
The state government, in its defense, maintained that state government made every attempt to safeguard the interest of common man and wrong policies adopted by the Central government, of making fuel prices decontrolled, has led to inflation in the country.