Legal action against traders who sell coconuts at high rates : CAA

COLOMBO (News1st): Legal action will be taken against traders selling coconuts at prices higher than the stipulated rates based on the circumference, the consumer affairs authority (CAA) has warned. "The main target of this is to reduce the prices of coconuts from 110 rupees to 65 or 70 rupees," CAA chairman Shantha Dissanayake, a retired major general, told media on Sunday. Coconuts with a circumference above 13 inches would be priced at Rs 70, between 12 and 13 inches at Rs 62 and below 12 inches at Rs 60, according to the newly imposed laws. "If coconut is sold at more than 70 rupees in an unfair manner...we will directly take legal action," a CAA officer said. However, consumer rights groups have raised suspicion over the new law, suspecting it to be a move that would benefit a certain group of people. Ranjith Vithanage, a consumer rights activist, raised concerns citing that the post of chairman in the Coconut Development Authority, Coconut Cultivation Board and the Coconut Research Institute are held by one person. "Therefore, he will offer coconuts at a good price for his people," he remarked.