Bhubaneswar: In a novel protest against the failure of the Central and Odisha governments to curb the rocketing price of onions, Congress activists sold the essential commodity at Rs 40 per kg in the state capital on Monday.
Led by the Bhubaneswar District Congress president, Manas Choudhury, the party workers set up stall to sell onions at Master Canteen Square. It drew a huge number of people eager to cash in on the opportunity.
“My family is used to purchasing onions at Rs 100 a kg from the market. Today I was able to buy 500 grams sold by Congress at Rs 40 a kg. It will take eight days for my family to consume this,” said a buyer.
Speaking to the media, Choudhury said his party sold 250 grams of onion to each person at Rs 10. “We will continue to sell this essential vegetable till its price comes down,” he added.
Reacting to the protest sale of onions by Congress, Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare Minister Ranendra Pratap Swain said onion was being sold in Orisha at a lower price as compared to other states, .
The minister played down the Congress protest by stating that the party has not come up with a permanent solution.
Swain said the price of onions has gone up in Odisha due to acute shortfall in production in Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh due to unseasonal rainfall. “However, the price will come down appreciably by the last week of December after onions are harvested in these two states,” he added.
