MARGAO: The exorbitant prices of essentials commodities including the local vegetables are ruining the lives of people from the low income and middle income group. Consumers have faced a sharp rise in prices of staple food items such as pulses, sugar and edible oil.

Besides the rise in prices of almost all essential commodities, the hike in prices of LPG, kerosene and petrol has added to their woes. Consumers have alleged that civil supply authorities, weight and measure department and district administration is yet to take measures to ensure that the price list of essential commodities is displayed by traders.

People have demanded that the civil supply authorities should carry inspections of traders alleging that prices of essential commodities vary from one shop to another in Salcete. This they say will keep a check on malpractices in the open market as far as weighing of commodities is concerned.

People have alleged that none of the shopkeepers display the price list and no proper scales were being used. During the last five months, civil supply authorities and weights and measure department have not carried out necessary raids to check the price list nor to see the quality of the commodities supplied to the people in Salcete. Even as several traders use the scales to weigh the commodities some of the scales were not up to the mark and concerned department hardly carries the inspections of the shops. No one knows the mystery behind the same.

Citizens are agitated over the fact that no authorities from civil supply comes to check the grocery shops to check the rates of essential commodities paving way for traders to sell the essential commodities at rates of their choice neither weights and measure department checks the scales. A citizen said that most of sweet vendors weigh the sweets along with the box there by doing injustice to the customers while sweets have become very expensive.

A resident of Gogal told this paper that when he questioned the sweet mart owner, he said that he would add one more peda in a box which can be treated as weight of the box. He said that the said sweet vendor sells all the commodities at higher prices without displaying the price board. He sought to know why such vendors were spared by the civil supply and weights and measure department.

Consumers allege that prices of essential commodities goes on changing every month in the market and the common men are in a fix over frequent change in prices of commodities.

Rising prices of essential commodities like wheat, rice, sugar, ghee, mug dal, masur dal including groceries and vegetables have thrown family budgets of the common man and people below poverty line into disarray. There is dissatisfaction among the common men with the fact that the prices of some of the essential commodities have been revised further.

Prices of varieties of vegetables in the vegetable markets were soaring. Prices of Brinjal, onion, cucumber, bhendi besides fruits have also gone up. Common men have started feeling the pinch of the price rise in vegetables and other essential items and those who have nothing to cushion the effect are cutting down on their monthly intake on other eatables.