Potato Price Hike Pinches the Pocket As Supplies Dry Up In State

Bhubaneswar: It is now the time of Potato to bring tears to the eyes of the consumers in state. Rising price of the essential vegetable potato has started pinching the pockets of the common man in Odisha. The price of potato has risen to an exorbitant level of Rs 60 per Kilogram in just within one month. The price of Potato, the main staple veggie for most Odias, has impacted everybody including the restaurants and road side eateries.

For people already grappling with the soaring vegetable and essential food items, the hike has come as a shocker. In Capital city Bhubaneswar and Cuttack, Potato is being sold at Rs 60 per kilogram. The situation is same in other places of the state as well. The price rise has been attributed to the low supply from neighbouring West Bengal and high transportation cost of bringing potato from Uttar Pradesh.

The recent efforts of the government to reign in the price rise have not been effective. Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare Minister Krushna Chandra Patra had said that the market situation has improved after Potatoes from UP reached Odisha. But as per traders, the supply is meagre and cost of transport is high. Many meetings of the Government with traders and officials have not been fruitful.

In Capital City Bhubaneswar, the wholesale price of Potato rose to Rs 50 to Rs 55 and retail price is hovering at Rs 60. The arrival of potato trucks has diminished in the last few days. As per some traders of the Unit 2 Market, the price of potato is likely to rise further as there is no visibility of arrival of stock into the state.

The situation is same in Cuttack, Berhampur, and other places of Odisha. In Berhampur, the traders have said that the Potato stock arrival has dwindled in the last few days. Also, the quality of potato coming from Uttar Pradesh is very bad and sometimes unusable.