Jaipur, July 19. Selected fair prices shops of the state government’s Food & Civil Supplies Department would soon sell consumer goods and other items on their counters along with the items rationed under the Public Distribution System (PDS). Chief Minister Smt. Vasundhara Raje stated this while chairing a high-level meeting of department in CMO on Saturday.

Smt. Raje directed the officials to launch the first phase of the pilot run of the new system at selected fair price shops by August 15. Presently, sugar, wheat and kerosene only are available at the PDS shops.

The Chief Minister was of the opinion that if quality consumer goods and other items would be available at the PDS counters as per requirement of the consumers at affordable prices, general public would be benefitted. This would also bring in a change in these shops. She asked the officials to directly talk to the producers of consumer goods and to the major multi-brand retail firms so that these items could be made available at comparative rates.

Smt. Raje emphasized on sale of the products of Self-Help-Groups through the fair price shops in order to promote the smaller ‘in-house’ production units. There are about 25,000 fair price shops in the state. Principal Secretary Finance Shri Subhash Garg, Principal Secretary Food and Civil Supplies Shri Subodh Agarwal and other senior officials were also present in the meeting.