Officials to intensify raids to check malpractices by outlets

900 cases registered for various offences including excess rates at rythu bazaars, shops

April 14, 2020 11:24 pm | Updated 11:24 pm IST - VIJAYAWADA

Officials of the Legal Metrology Department putting a caution notice at the head office in Vijayawada on Tuesday.

Officials of the Legal Metrology Department putting a caution notice at the head office in Vijayawada on Tuesday.

Officials of the Legal Metrology Department will conduct surprise checks on malls, rythu bazaars, milk parlours, shops and other establishments to prevent hoarding of essential goods and selling them at excess prices.

With the Centre extending the lockdown till May 3, Inspector General of Police (IGP) and the Controller of Legal Metrology M. Kanta Rao held a meeting with the Deputy Controller, Assistant Controller and inspectors on Tuesday and reviewed the situation in the State.

Mr. Kanta Rao directed the officers to conduct more raids to check malpractices. Holidays and leaves for all the staff in the department were cancelled, he said.

900 cases

“Special teams conducted more than 18,500 inspections on medical shops, petrol pumps, kirana shops and super bazars across the State and booked 900 cases for various violations,” said the IG.

“We booked 368 cases for selling rice, pulses and other essential goods at excess rates in super bazars and kirana shops. More than 60 cases have been registered for similar offences in rythu bazaars, 118 cases on milk parlours and 21 cases on medical shops,” he told The Hindu .

Caution to traders

A vigil is being maintained to prevent black marketing and illegal storage of oil, pulses, rice, onions and other goods. The legal metrology officials were also conducting joint raids with Joint Collectors’ teams and Vigilance and Enforcement officials.

“Traders are requested to display price lists in front of shops, sell goods as per MRP, provide information on availability of goods and not resort to illegal storage. Public can complain to legal metrology officials by calling toll-free No. 1800-425-4202,” said Mr. Kanta Rao.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.