Fair price shop dealers on October 26 staged a protest in front of Civil Supplies godown demanding that the State government address their problems and demands immediately.
Addressing the gathering, Dealers’ Association president Mandadi Venkat Rao said the ration shop dealers were allowed to sell the gunny bags since the tenure of combined Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy.
The State government, however, under the pretext of shortage of gunny, was not allowing the dealers to sell the gunny bags. Instead, they were offered ₹20 per bag. The officials, however, assert that it was not possible to pay such a huge amount to the dealers. Consequently, the dealers were suffering losses. The dealers have landed in trouble due to the decision of the officials, he alleged.
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In addition, the dealers were not paid the dues for many months. They were not in a position to meet the day to day expenses and maintain their shops. Their income had come down to half from ₹15,000 to ₹10,000 per month, he added.