SHILLONG: People across the state, including capital Shillong, spent day four of the nationwide lockdown on Saturday frantically looking for essential commodities although there was some improvement over Friday with the administration allowing more shops to open to cater to the demand. That curfew would continue till 6 am of March 31 added to the anxiety as people wanted to stock up.
To add to the misery, prices of various items skyrocketed defying the government’s diktat of holding the price line.
The state was shut down even before the country went into lockdown on March 25, and people since then have been at their wits’ end, not knowing where and when the essentials would come from.
Though the state government claimed to have activated store.meghamart.com as an end-to-end essential commodity ordering and delivery platform to make these available at the door step, the site did not work.
The government also made arrangement for retailers from all the eleven districts of the state to purchase groceries from three designated places of Paltan Bazar, Cantonment area and Happy Valley as most of the wholesalers are located in these areas.
Retailers bought groceries till 1 am on Saturday, and again continued till late into the night.
Though the timing was from 6 pm, hundreds of vehicles from different parts of the state made a beeline for MES Point-Anjalee-Garrison Ground shortly after 3 pm leading to traffic snarls in the area.
There was also some confusion about the order of the DC to promulgate curfew in the city.
While in some areas, the city police seemed to be aggressive against anyone who moved out of their homes, there were others in some other localities who appeared to be least bothered about enforcing curfew.
Price rise
Despite the warning and talk of stringent action, prices of essential commodities have increased in the city.
At some shops in Laitumkhrah apples were selling for Rs 280 per kg and grapes for Rs 200 per kg.
A shopkeeper, however, insisted that prices were the same as before. “ I was selling these at the same rate before”, he claimed.
According to reports, prices of eggs, potato and onion also shot up.
The Deputy Commissioner (Supply), East Khasi Hills District had earlier informed that in order to maintain availability and normal prices of essential commodities, wholesalers and traders were directed to acquire, keep buffer stock and maintain normal prices.
All the open market wholesalers and traders were directed to display stock position and prices regularly in order to maintain transparency, but there were few takers.
The administration had warned of strict action against unethical trade practices like hoarding, black marketeering etc.
