Stipulated maximum retail price for samba varieties

Irangika RANGE

The Government has decided to stipulate a maximum retail price of Rs.70 per kilo for all varieties of samba rice to prevent the unfair trading of errant traders.

Trade, Marketing Development, Co-operatives and Consumer Services Minister Bandula Gunawardhana told the Daily News that several varieties of samba are available in the market and errant traders have been engaged in unfair trading by selling samba rice at higher prices to consumers.

He said the Consumer Affairs Authority(CAA) has received a number of complaints by consumers in this regard. The CAA has been instructed to carry out islandwide raids to nab the errant traders who sell samba rice at higher prices violating the stipulating maximum retail price of Rs.70.

The Government has been able to stabilise rice prices for the last six months and consumers are expected to be granted further relief with the implementation of this decision," the Minister added.

He further said every Government had imported duty free rice during the months of October, November, December and January. "But, we did not do it this time because we had enough rice stocks," he said.

With the stipulation of maximum retail prices for rice and with the bumper paddy crops harvesting in the Ampara and Kurunegala Districts these days, the prices of rice are expected to be slashed in the market from next month.