Special squads formed by government departments have increased the frequency of surprise inspections at medical shops in the district in the wake of complaints over unreasonable price hike of sanitisers and safety masks. So far, action has been taken against owners of six shops, which were selling masks at inflated prices.
Squads of Legal Metrology, Civil Supplies, Police and Health departments have sprung into action to track distributors who try to cash in on the unfair trade. Within the Kozhikode city limits, the Legal Metrology Department squad has already exposed three such shops and registered cases against the owners. “In our recent inspections, the medical shop owners were found selling masks which were not even having the mandatory MRP tag.
The inspection was conducted in the shops after we received confidential complaints,” said an Assistant Controller attached to the Kohikode Legal Metrology Department. He said more surprise inspections would be conducted on the basis of public complaints received through official helplines.
Civil Supplies Department officials said they initiated legal action against the owners of two shops at Vadakara.
Officials with the Kozhikode Town police station said they recently exposed the owners of a private medical shop which was suspected of selling huge quantities of low-cost masks at a higher price to wholesale buyers in other States.
Circle Inspector A. Umesh, who led the surprise inspection in the shop last Saturday, said the shop management was suspected of charging ₹17 for masks priced below ₹2.
As part of the investigation, cases were registered against the shop owners under sections 420 (punishment for cheating and dishonesty inducing delivery of property) of the Indian Penal Code and 118 (penalty for causing grave violation of public order or danger) of the Kerala Police Act, he said.
