Assam: Consumers paying higher prices for failure of departmental mechanisms

Staff Reporter

Guwahati: To combat price rise in the state, there are district task forces, price monitoring centres, and other mechanisms in place. But the menace of price rise is continuing unabated due to the failure of these mechanisms.

According to official data, the inflation rate in Assam during 2024 was more than the all-India rate. In 2024, the inflation rate in Assam was 5.5%, while the all-India rate was 4.9%. Similarly, the consumer price index has been gradually increasing. In 2022, the index was 175.85, which went up in 2023 to 183.53 and again increased to 193.70 in 2024.

In order to enable people to buy goods at less than market prices, the state government launched 'Aamar Dukan on Wheels,' where 22 items like sugar, atta, pulses, etc., were made available at discounted prices. The initiative was successful for two years but disappeared after that.

On the other hand, the Public Distribution and Consumer Affairs department gives one logic for the price rise phenomenon, saying Assam is a consuming state and maximum items are brought from outside the state. When the price increases at the source, the price goes up in the state as well, officials of the department said. To check the price rise, the department set up district task forces headed by the additional district commissioner of the district concerned. Moreover, price monitoring centres were set up in 28 districts in the state, and their duty is to monitor the prices daily. In spite of their efforts, the hike in prices continues unabated.

A few consumers in Chandmari, Ganeshguri, and Beltola told this correspondent, "We want an answer from the minister concerned as to why the prices of essentials are increasing and remain unchecked. Cannot the government see that this is causing a financial pinch in the pockets of the common people? The government is providing free rice, free treatment, and other facilities to the economically weaker sections. But the lower middle class is not getting any benefits. People earning Rs 1 lakh as salary have to pay the same price as those earning Rs 20,000. Traders do not differentiate but charge the same price for everybody."

Mahesh Choudhury, a common consumer in Ulubari, said, "The charging inflation rate has made survival miserable for the people belonging to the lower income categories. We have no choice but to reduce our purchases and curtail our household expenses. It is not only essential commodities; prices of medicines and other necessities have also increased manifold."

A few days ago, in the ongoing Assembly session, Consumer Affairs Minister Kaushik Rai tried to justify the price rise by saying, "Assam is a consuming state, and we are dependent on other states for most of the essential items. So the price increases here when the prices go up in the source. Essential commodities are brought directly from other states by the traders. Goods go from the traders to the wholesalers, who then sell them to retailers. The price increases when the goods pass from point to point till they reach the consumers. As for vegetables, these are seasonal, and the prices are initially high but decrease when the supply is more."

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