Govt sleeps as consumers weep
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH,Oct 26 — With onions becoming "elusive", prices of essential commodities, fruits, vegetables, edible oils, cereals and pulses have not lagged behind as an average household budget has been crumbled by an unprecedented hike in prices since the beginning of this year.

A Tribune survey reveals that onion, which had no takers at Rs 6 a kg at the beginning of the year, witnessed a phenomenal 1200 per cent increase in its price as it crossed the Rs 70 a kg mark in recent weeks. Similarly, prices of edible oils, too, have shot up from Rs 33 a kg to Rs 60 a kg with the price of mustard oil touching Rs 80 a kg.

It is not only onions and edible oils, but the prices of other daily use items, like coriander, touching a record price of Rs 160 a kg. Tomatoes, potatoes, cabbage, cauliflower, brinjals, green chillies, lemons — name any vegetable, its market price will shock you. Vegetables and fruit had never been so costly as they are this year.

Consumers are baffled. They are surprised at the total indifference of the government in controlling the price line. A senior bureaucrat of the Punjab Government said what else could one expect from a government of traders. Those very traders first export onions at Rs 9 a kg and then reimport the commodity at Rs 12 a kg. Not a single raid has been conducted to unearth hoarding. No hue and cry has been made to check spiralling prices of edible oils, pulses, cereals and even rice and atta.

The only items which have escaped the fury of the price rise are perhaps non-vegetarian items like chicken, fish and mutton. Though their prices have gone up but they are in consonance with the inflation rate and in line with previous years.

The situation is no different in Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab and Haryana. The increase in prices of vegetables, fruits, cereals, pulses, and edible oils has been a minimum of 30 per cent since the beginning of this year.

Alarmed at the government apathy and continuous price rise, members of the Joint Action Committee of the Punjab and UT Employees now plan to gherao the office of the Deputy Commissioner of Chandigarh early next month besides launching a concerted struggle to fight this price war engineered by "vested interests". Mr P.S. Lamba, Mr Khushal Singh Naga and Mr Prem Jindal, all office-bearers of the committee, said the common man was being crushed by the mounting price line.The employees were the worst hit. "We cannot be silent spectators to this problem any more," they added.

In Shimla, onions were selling at Rs 59 a kg, mustard oil at Rs 80 a kg while the average prices of pulses have gone up by Rs 5 to Rs 10 a kg during the past few months.

In Jammu, the prices of onions shot up from Rs 7 a kg to Rs 55 a kg within past six months. Eggs were selling at Rs 24 a dozen while the price of rice has witnessed an increase of Rs 500 a quintal. Tomatoes were selling at Rs 32 a kg while peas were sold for Rs 40 a kg. Milk is selling at Rs 12 to Rs 14 a litre while one kg of cheese is priced at Rs 58.

In Rohtak, onions were selling at Rs 3500 per quintal in the wholesale market while potatoes were priced between Rs 20 and Rs 22 a kg. Green peas were selling at Rs 40 a kg in the retail market.

The situation was no better in Jalandhar. Onions were quoted at Rs 60 a kg and poor man’s vegetable, brinjal, at Rs 25 a kg. Sarson ka saag has touched a high of Rs 25 a kg while one could buy a kilogram of tomatoes for no less than Rs 30.

In Patiala, tomatoes were quoted at Rs 28 a kg while garlic was selling at Rs 40 a kg. The prices of radish, brinjals, green peas, cauliflower and cabbage have come down slightly this week compared to last week but were still on the higher side than at the same time last year.

The holy city of Amritsar, too, is reeling under this price hike. The prices of vegetables and fruits appear to be in the same line as in the rest of the state where people had earlier absorbed a shocking 40 per cent increase in bus fares and more than 15 per cent hike in power tariff.