Kerala State Civil Supplies Corporation Limited (Supplyco) has reported record sales of ₹386.19 crore during this year’s Onam fair that ran from August 25. The state-run network is being credited for keeping price hikes in check and preventing inflation from spiralling during the festive season.
Close to 57 lakh consumers visited Supplyco outlets across the State during the Onam season. Of the total sales, subsidised essential commodities brought in around ₹180 crore, while non-subsidised sales contributed about ₹206 crore. District-level fairs added another ₹5.12 crore, and mobile Onam markets brought in nearly ₹45 lakh. Constituency-level fairs chipped in with sales of ₹17.17 crore.
Some outlets stood out for their performance. Twenty-nine of them crossed sales between ₹75 lakh and ₹1 crore, while another hundred reported sales ranging from ₹50 lakh to ₹75 lakh.
Rice turned out to be the staple favourite with 1,19,856.32 quintals sold, fetching ₹37.03 crore until September 3. Red chilli sales accounted for ₹8.85 crore with over 7,467 quintals sold. Among oils, Sabari coconut oil dominated the list with sales of over 20.13 lakh litres, raking in ₹68.96 crore. Kera coconut oil also held its ground with 1.11 lakh litres sold, generating nearly ₹5 crore.
Distribution of Onam kits progressed steadily too. As many as 5.53 lakh Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) cardholders — around 93% of the total — received their kits. In the priority category, 40.59 lakh households collected theirs, covering 97.22% of beneficiaries. Altogether, 82.53 lakh ration card holders, about 86.75% of the total across categories, received their allotted ration for August.
Food and civil supplies minister G.R. Anil said that the turnout and sales underline the scale of the government’s efforts to keep essentials accessible and affordable during the festival. Observers believe the final picture of how far Supplyco managed to ease household budgets will emerge only once the dust of the festive rush settles.
