A correspondent of “Chronicles of Turkmenistan” reports that effective September, 2021 food rations (subsidized grocery packs ) will be delivered to Ashgabat residents only once a month.
In order to prevent queues forming in front of state-run shops groceries in short supplyhave been delivered to homes of Ashgabat residents since mid May. Until September the food allowance, which consisted of sugar, vegetable oil and chicken drumsticks, were delivered every 10 days, sometimes with delays.
Inhabitants of some apartment buildings in the residential district “Parakhat” received their food rations between 3 and o 7 September, 2021. Delivery men informed them that grocery packs will not be delivered again before October. When indignant residents tried to find out the reasons, they replied that they are only responsible for deliveries.
The reasons behind this decision are unknown. When groceries are allocated to us, we just have to deliver them to the indicated address. We have been informed that from now on food rations will be delivered to residents once a month, – one of the delivery persons said.
This time, instead of imported chicken drumsticks, half of a local chicken was included (less than a kilo). The price for a kilo of chicken is 21 manats. Chicken drumsticks used to be sold at 16 manats per kilo. Sugar still costs 9 manats and a liter of vegetable oil is sold at 18 manats.
In privately-owned stores a kilo of chicken costs 75 manats, chicken drumsticks are sold at 55 manats, sugar 22 to 23 manats and vegetable oil 65 manats per liter.
Some customers interviewed by the correspondent of “Chronicles of Turkmenistan” assumed that a part of the groceries might be being diverted to neighbouring Afghanistan.
On 25 August Turkmenistan’s Foreign Ministry reported that over 70 rail cars and about 160 cargo trucks were allowed daily access through checkpoints “Imamnazar Aqina” and “Serketabat- Torghundi”. Cargo is mainly made up of oil products, liquefied gas, grain and consumer goods.
On 11 August, a few days before the seizure of power in Afghanistan, representatives of the Taliban movement met with Deputy Foreign Minister of Turkmenistan Vepa Khadjiev to discuss trade relations.
They were interested in increasing the volume of groceries and gas supplies to AfghanistanThe post Ration packs to be delivered to Ashgabat residents less often first appeared on Chronicles of Turkmenistan.