Bigsurprise for housewives

KOCHI: Considering the huge rise in the price of vegetables, the Vegetable and Fruit Promotion Council Keralam (VFPCK) has come up with a Vegetable Big Bazaar 2012, which will offer quality vegetables at a discount price. The fair, set up at Jawaharlal Nehru International Stadium at Kaloor, will offer vegetables at a price 30 percent lower than in the market.The organisers said the bazaar will function till the overall vegetable prices come to a moderate level.Earlier, inaugurating the fair, Excise Minister K Babu said that it was a good initiative by the VFPCK at a time when the public are facing difficulties owing to the price rise. “Similiar fairs will be organised at all major  cities and municipalities. The one in Thiruvananthapuram will be opened on Saturday,” Babu said.The shortage of vegetables arriving from Tamil Nadu has pushed up the prices in the local markets in Kerala.Handing over the first kit to a housewife District Collector P I Sheik Pareeth told the consumers to nurture a self-sufficient agricultural culture in Kerala rather than being a consumer state.The fair attracted a large number of consumers on day one. “This fair really brings a huge relief to me since I was compelled to rework on my weekly budget to cop with the huge increase in the vegetable prices,” said P S Maya, a resident of Kaloor.Corporation councillor Aagi teacher presided over the function. Speaking on the occasion, GCDA chairman N Venugopal lauded the efforts taken by the Vegetable and Fruit Promotion Council Keralam. Recently the state government has launched an initiative to distribute vegetables and fruits at a subsidised rate to the public. As part of the project, a couple of vegetable stalls were opened at various parts of the state.The government-operated Maradu market in Kochi, where vegetables and fruits grown from different parts of the district are brought for sale directly by the farmers, has been a major hit.