Chennai: The Tamil Nadu government on Monday announced that the sale of tomatoes will be expanded to 300 fair price shops and it has also planned to launch mobile vegetable outlets to stabilise the soaring prices of vegetables.
Chief Minister M K Stalin chaired a meeting with Ministers K R Periyakaruppan (Cooperatives) and M R K Panneerselvam (Agriculture), Chief Secretary Shiv Das Meena, and senior government officials at the Secretariat here in which he directed them to open mobile vegetable shops, wherever required, through the city corporation and Tamil Nadu Horticulture Development Agency as they had successfully done during the Covid-19 imposed lockdown.
Tomato is being sold for Rs 140 per kilogram in the retail market at present. On July 4, the state government launched the sale of tomatoes for Rs 60 a kilo at 82 fair price shops in Chennai, in an effort aimed at offsetting the soaring price of the commodity. This initiative will be extended to 300 ration shops.
Taking stock of the situation arising out of spiralling prices, the Chief Minister asked the officials to continue the sale of vegetables through the ‘Pannai Pasumai’ (farm fresh) outlets in the state and also monitor the prices of Urad Dal and Thoor Dal.
Further, the Chief Minister instructed the officials to ensure that vegetables are sold at rates lower than the retail market prices at the farmers’ shandies, and take up appropriate action against hoarders.
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