Mamata helps Naveen overcome potato crisis

Odisha Channel Bureau Bhubaneswar, Aug 9: Odisha Government on Saturday claimed to have overcome the potato crisis after movement of trucks became normal on Odisha-West Bengal border.The trucks loaded with potatoes from West Bengal started smoothly entering Odisha as movement of West-Bengal bound fish and vegetable laden trucks, which were stopped on the Odisha side of the border for the past three days, resumed.The deadlock was resolved after Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik discussed the issue with West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday.Food Supply and Consumer Welfare Minister Sanjay Das Burma told journalists that West Bengal government had allowed movement of potato laden trucks stuck at its border from 11 am.While some trucks had already reached Cuttack and Bhubaneswar, other trucks will reach places such as Puri and Berhampur by evening, Das Burma said.As potatoes were still being sold at high rates in different areas of the State, the Minister claimed that the situation will turn normal as potatoes to be provided by National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (NAFED) would reach the State shortly.The short supply of potatoes had resulted forced people buy it at a rate as high as Rs.60 till potato vanished from the market in most parts of the State, particularly in flood-affected regions since Thursday.