Now the Srinagar-Jammu highway has re-opened for traffic on Tuesday after almost eight days of continuous closure, markets in Kashmir are anxiously waiting for supplies to come in again. An acute shortage of food supplies in Kashmir has been caused by the highway closure.
According to locals, most vegetables are still not available even in wholesale markets and the ones that are available, like potatoes, onions, turnips and carrots, are selling at high rates.
“Fresh vegetables are not in sight anywhere. Some shopkeepers are selling decayed vegetables at exorbitant rates,” said a resident of the Bagh-e-Mahtab area.
The government’s Legal Metrology department booked 15 traders for violating laws on Wednesday during market inspections in the city. “The defaulters included sellers of vegetables, poultry, fruit, Kiryana shop owners, and petrol pumps. The offenders were penalised on the spot and an amount of Rs 60,100 was collected as penalty,” said a representative of the department.
Fruit and vegetable dealers had expressed helplessness and said that some vendors were indulging in black marketing.
“Supply is short but higher rates are also due to hoarding by vendors. There is little check by the government,” Shahid Chowdhary, joint secretary of New Kashmir Fruit Association Parimpora, told.
