Central teams on Tuesday unearthed very large hoardings of soyabean and mustard seeds in the Dewas, Shajapur, and Guna districts of Madhya Pradesh.
The large number of seeds discovered was much above the stock limit prescribed by the Government. It may be noted that the hoarding of seeds has pushed up the prices of soyabean and other edible oils.
The State Government has been asked to step in to take necessary action under the Essential Commodities Act, 1955.
In Maharashtra and Rajasthan, large quantities of edible oils were found in excess of the prescribed quantities of the control order. Wholesalers and Big Chain Retail outlets were the main violators.
The State Governments have been requested to take corrective measures in accordance with the relevant sections of the EC Act. Inspection is ongoing in the remaining five States.
The State Governments of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, and Rajasthan have also been requested to ensure that the supply chain is not affected while taking action under EC Act.
In order to ensure strict enforcement of the Central Order of 30th March 2022 and 3rd February 2022, Central teams from the Department of Food and Public Distribution have been deputed to conduct surprise inspections of the stocks of edible oils and oilseeds held by Retailers, Wholesalers, Big Chain Retailers and Processors in major oilseed producing and consuming States.
Teams have been sent to Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Telangana, Gujarat, and Delhi.
The Government of India has taken several proactive steps in the last few months to stabilize the prices of edible oils in the country, including the declaration of stocks by all stockholders of edible oils and oilseeds under the Essential Commodities Act (EC Act), 1955.
In order to curb price escalation on account of hoarding and resultant artificial scarcity of edible oils, which is a basic necessity in the food basket, the Government of India has notified a Central Order on 30th March 2022 amending the Removal of Licensing Requirements, Stock Limits and Movement Restrictions on Specified Foodstuffs Order, 2016 and its Central Order dated 3rd February 2022 by extending the stock limits for all Edible Oils and Oilseeds put together for a period up to 31st December 2022 for all States and Union Territories.
This order is effective from 1st April 2022 up to 31st December 2022.
Effective enforcement of the Essential Commodities Act, 1955 by the States is crucial and requires supportive action by the State Governments and other authorities at all levels with the aim of ensuring adequate availability of essential commodities at reasonable prices including edible oils for the common man.
Prices of cooking oil are on an upwards swing globally. The domestic prices of edible oils have been following the international suit and the prices have increased considerably over the past month which may be attributed to the current geopolitical condition.