As rumour spread, salt sold at Rs 200 kg

***Panicky consumers rush to the stores to buy salt because of rumour of its shortage on Friday. Pix by WT Lytan***

Shillong, November 15: Shillong residents woke up to a rude shock on Friday morning as rumour spread like wildfire that salt will not be available for a long time and hundreds of consumers rushed to the grocery stores in different parts of the city to buy salt at an exorbitant price. The shopkeepers had a field day as salt was being sold at Rs 100-150 per kg in many shops of the city.

Many shops run out of stock by forenoon as salts were exhausted because of the panic buying by the consumers in the city, that too at a price that was unimaginable. Some said that they bought salt as Rs 200 per kilogram.

The panic that salt would not be available for a longtime create a situation where people from different parts of Shillong and even Jowai rushed to the nearest shops to buy and stockpile salts for their daily use.

The situation became so grim that the district administration had to immediately make a public announcement on Friday afternoon that there were enough stock of salts in the state and asked the public not to do panic buying or buy salt at an exorbitant price.

Meghalaya food & civil supplies principal secretary PW Ingty assured that the state has enough supply of salts and asked the people not to panic. He told reporters, “The rumour of shortage of salt is unfounded.”

Ingty said that as soon as rumour of shortage of the supply of salts was doing the round in the morning, he contracted his counterparts in Assam and found out that there were enough of supplies of salts to last another six months.

It is felt that unscrupulous traders tried to create artificial shortage of the salt supply that led to panic buying resulting in the price of salt skyrocketing. The district administrations in different districts of the state have been directed to take necessary steps to assure the public not to panic.

East Khasi hills SP M Kharkhrang told this website that the supply department officials have spread throughout the capital to find out if anyone is hoarding salts to create an artificial shortage. He said, “ Action will be taken as soon as I get a complaint from the supply department officials.” – By Our Reporter