Guwahati, Nov 4 (PTI) Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Wednesday held an urgent meeting with representatives of traders' bodies and different department officials to discuss price rise of essential commodities.

He took stock of the situation from the members of Assam Chambers of Commerce, Kamrup Chambers of Commerce and other traders' bodies and asked for suggestions to control the spiralling prices of essential items, an official release said.

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Saying that the increasing prices of potato, onion, vegetables, eggs and cooking oils have impacted the common people adversely and caused strong resentment among them, Sonowal said that the government cannot remain inactive in this situation.

He also pointed out the disparity in prices of items like potato, onion and vegetables in wholesale and retail markets, and warned those traders engaged in abnormal price hike of essentials of strict action.

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The chief minister asked the departments concerned to set up integrated dedicated teams to monitor the markets and keep a tab on the price rise of the essential items.

"He also stressed on the need to take joint responsibility by government and business community to check price hike and said that a solution must be found to serve the interest of both sellers and buyers," the release said.

Sonowal directed Food and Civil Supplies Minister Phani Bhushan Choudhury to hold another round of meeting Thursday with those representatives of shopping malls and members of business communities absent on Wednesday.

The members of the traders' bodies informed him that some items like potato and onion have seen price hike at their source and said that from Thursday onwards, wholesale prices will come down slightly, the statement said.

They also urged the chief minister to take action against the unauthorised wholesale markets, which have sprung up in different parts of the city.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)