MoCS plans to operate fair price outlets to ensure effective supply of food commodities and other machineries in the market and stabilize their price amid arbitrary price hike by traders in the aftermath of the quake.The ministry used to operate such outlets during Dashain, Tihar and Chhath festivals for couple of months.
"We realized the need to operate fair price outlets as there has been mismatch in demand and supply of some products. Also, traders are overcharging consumers for some products," Naindra Prasad Upadhyaya, secretary of MoCS, told Republica.
As public enterprises -- Dairy Development Corporation (DDC), Salt Trading Corporation (STC), National Trading Limited (NTL) and Nepal Food Corporation (NFC) -- are reluctant to open such outlets as they are yet to get subsidy amount of last Dashain-Tihar season, Upadhyaya said they would request the finance ministry to arrange necessary financial resources.
National Planning Commission (NPC) has also suggested to the government to open such outlets in quake-hit areas in coordination with local cooperatives. However, NPC officials said the plan could not be implemented immediately as cooperatives in affected areas have suffered damages from earthquake.
Shambhu Koirala, director general of Department of Commerce and Supply Management (DoCSM), said there is an urgent need to open fair price outlets in quake-hit areas as well as major markets until the situation becomes normal. "We have received reports of traders overcharging consumers for food commodities like lentils and rice. Customers are also being cheated on corrugated roofing sheets," Koirala said, adding, "Fair price outlets will discourage such activities and help stabilize the price of different products."
Meanwhile, Finance Secretary Suman Sharma asked MoCS and DoCSM should come up with plan to opening fair price outlets. "It is not that easy to intervene the market through such outlets," Sharma told Republica, adding, "We will subsidize PEs by any means if related government bodies come up with a convincing proposal."
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