Chennai, Oct 16, 2026 13:52 ISTThe Tamil Nadu government announced measures to control rising prices of essential commodities, including the sale of fine-quality rice at a subsidised price of Rs 30 a kg, news agency PTI reported.
The rice will be sold across the state through Amudham departmental stores and cooperative stores. The decision comes after retail rice prices in the open market rose to between Rs 75 and Rs 85 a kg.
Food and Civil Supplies Minister P Venkataramanan said the increase in prices was caused by the impact of El Nino on agriculture, regional supply shortages and global economic factors.
In the first phase, the government will distribute 25,000 metric tonnes of fine-quality raw and parboiled rice at Rs 30 a kg through 201 cooperative stores and 49 Amudham outlets. Consumers can buy up to 5 kg, depending on their requirement, from this weekend, the government said in a release.
As our first and foremost priority, we are procuring one lakh metric tonnes of Grade A rice. About 25,000 metric tonnes have been released for immediate distribution through Amudham departmental stores and cooperative stores across the state, Venkataramanan told reporters, according to PTI.
He added that toor dal would be supplied to all shops at Rs 130 a kg, while rice distribution would begin immediately. The government is procuring an initial stock of 500 metric tonnes of toor dal from the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India, to be sold through 250 outlets. Onions will continue to be sold at Rs 35 a kg through cooperative networks.
The government will form a price monitoring committee based on supplies available in the market to track fluctuating prices and take steps to stabilise them. Addressing potential irregularities, the minister warned that strict action would be taken against hoarding and black marketing.
Roughly 7.01 crore beneficiaries receive essential food items through nearly 2.29 crore family cards across the state. Authorities assured that regular supplies of rice through fair-price shops would remain uninterrupted, with reserves of sugar, palm oil and pulses secured for the next three months.
Traders in Tamil Nadu typically procure fine rice in bulk from neighboring states like Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Karnataka. However, lower crop yields caused by El Nino reduced available stocks, creating market shortages and surging retail rates.
The Price Monitoring Cell of the Department of Food and Consumer Protection routinely tracks the prices of 67 essential commodities and holds quarterly review meetings. Previous market interventions included selling over 2,500 metric tonnes of onions at Rs 35 a kg during earlier price spikes.
Other subsidized items at Amudham and cooperative outlets include boiled Ponni rice at Rs 60 a kg, toor dal at Rs 130, urad dal at Rs 140, garlic at Rs 240, coriander at Rs 240, and chilli at Rs 330, aiming to ease household financial burdens.