Potato price in Odisha skyrockets

The price of potato continues to skyrocket following the trend of most other vegetables in Odisha.

The prices have been hovering around Rs 30 in the city’s largest wholesale market at Unit-I for the past seven days. This has raised the rates at other places in the city to almost Rs 40 a kg.

The centralised permit system introduced in West Bengal has affected potato supply to the state and has pushed up the price.

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Tuesday urged his West Bengal counterpart Mamata Banerjee to ensure normal supply of potatoes from her state to Odisha.

“West Bengal Chief Minister has assured Patnaik that she would look into the matter,” a press release by Chief Minister’s Office said here.

The decision to stop potato transportation from West Bengal has led to unprecedented rise in the price of the vegetable during ‘Kartik’, an auspicious month in Odisha.

Meanwhile, the food supplies and consumer welfare (FSCW) department conducted raids on different markets here to check the stock and control prices. The vendors have been asked to sell potato at Rs 25 and onion at Rs 45 a kg instead of Rs 30 and Rs 50 a kg respectively.

According to state horticulture department, the state consumes around 9.21 lakh metric tonne potatoes a year as against the annual production of 2.1 lakh metric tonne. Major potato growing districts in the state are Kandhamal, Puri, Cuttack, Balasore and Sambalpur.

West Bengal meets Odisha’s potato demand, officials said.