Bhubaneswar: Amid ongoing potato crisis in the State, the government has decided to import the kitchen tuber from Uttar Pradesh.
The decision was taken due to the harassment by the West Bengal administration in providing the tuber. Speaking to media, Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare Minister Krushna Chandra Patra said that the import of potatoes from West Bengal will be stopped gradually. Potatoes will come from UP, not West Bengal, the minister added.
The state government has taken this crucial decision to solve the problem permanently, he added.
To address the longstanding potato shortage in Odisha, the state government has made alternative arrangements to source high-quality potatoes from Uttar Pradesh, bypassing traditional supplier West Bengal, which has been creating problems consistently. According to the Food Minister, this decision will resolve the crisis, ensuring a steady supply of good-quality potatoes to Odisha.
Chief Minister Mohan Majhi recently met his West Bengal counterpart Mamata Banerjee during the meeting of Niti Ayog in New Delhi and requested her to resolve the problem. But the crisis remained unsolved.
A meeting was held with the traders’ union at the Lok Seva Bhawan where they agreed to procure the tuber from UP, the minister said.
In response to the arbitrary actions of West Bengal, a few trucks loaded with the vegetable have arrived in the state today and more shipments will arrive in the coming days, Patra informed.
“This will gradually reduce the dependence on West Bengal for potatoes. The Uttar Pradesh government will extend all support in this regard,” Patra added.
