Chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday visited Jadu Babu’s Bazar in Bhowanipore to enquire about the onion price.

The surprise visit came on a day the state government started distributing onions from ration shops at Rs 59 a kilo, amid fears that the price could cross the Rs 150/kg mark in a day or two.

The chief minister made a detour on her way to Kharagpur and got off at the market to talk to some retailers selling onions. She asked the traders where they got their supplies from and also enquired whether the state government’s Sufal Bangla mobile stall was visiting the area.

The government has been selling onions at Rs 59 a kilo through Sufal Bangla’s mobile and fixed outlets. However, one cannot buy more than 500g of onions from such a stall in a day.

Among those with whom Mamata interacted at the market was Saila Roy, who sells vegetables on a footpath just outside the market.

The woman told the chief minister that he had been selling onions at Rs 130 to Rs 140 a kilo. An upset Mamata asked Saila who the middleman was from whom she had been buying onions.

“His name is Monosha Pal,” Saila told Mamata.

Mamata asked officials accompanying her to note down the name before moving on to talk to a few other traders about the prices of onions and potatoes.

While interacting with some middlemen at the market, Mamata said if the government could sell onions at Rs 59 a kilo, they too would have to bring down their prices so that customers could buy their daily stock.

This was the first time Mamata visited a market since the onion prices started spiralling a few weeks ago.

Addressing a rally in Kharagpur later in the day, she said: “Today’s onion price is Rs 140 a kilo. Price hike is the Centre’s subject. Did they take any action or hold any meeting?”

Soon after Mamata left the Bhowanipore market, a team of police officers started drawing up a list of middlemen who supply onions to retailers in the city.