Food and civil supplies minister G R Anil stated that basic food items are sold at SupplyCo at rates fixed in 2016
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The assembly witnessed heated discussions over price rise on Wednesday. Even as the government claimed SupplyCo has made effective intervention to control the prices, the opposition countered the claim, saying the prevailing high rates of products in the open market point to the government’s failure in addressing the issue.
Food and civil supplies minister G R Anil stated that the government has been providing 13 essential food items through SupplyCo at rates fixed in 2016, and that no other state in the country has made such effective interventions to arrest price rise.
Comparing the prices of several essential items in the SupplyCo, which are sold at heavily subsidized rates, with their prices in the open market, the minister said the government has infused Rs 1,853 crore for providing subsidy alone from 2016 to 2022.
In addition, he stated that the government also provided free food kits for 11 crore people in 13 instances and is also operating free kitchens and people’s restaurants to control price rise in the market.
Opposition leader V D Satheesan said he agreed to the minister’s claims that the food items are available at a lower price in the Supplyco outlets, but the market intervention does not mean that the government’s responsibility is limited to providing subsidy to the SupplyCo alone.
He said the government has to intervene in the open market as a majority of the population in the state depend upon it. He said issues like price rise are not being raised in the assembly not merely to criticize the government, but also to bring such crucial issues to the notice of the government.
“The minister himself agreed that the prices are much higher in the open market when he compared the prices with that of the SupplyCo. This is exactly what we have also pointed out. The government has failed miserably in arresting the prices in the open market,” he said. He added that a price control monitoring system should be put in place to arrest the price rise in the open market.
Earlier, seeking leave for an adjournment motion, MLA Roji M John said the figures of the economics and statistics department itself would give a clear picture on how the prices have gone up since 2016 in the state. He said that the government will not be able to justify itself outside, like how it is claiming inside the assembly regarding controlling the price rise, as the reality is totally different.