A protest outside a Reliance Fresh outlet in Lucknow. (File picture)

Lucknow, Sept. 3: The Mayavati government may ask retail outlets like Reliance Fresh to procure vegetables from state-run wholesale markets, and not directly from farmers, sources said today.

The government apparently hopes this middle course will satisfy the companies as well as the Opposition Samajwadi Party, which has led violent protests against new-age retail stores selling farm products in the state.

On August 23, the government shut down all such outlets after 20 Reliance Fresh and several Spencer’s stores were vandalised in Lucknow and Varanasi a day after they had opened.

State cabinet secretary Shashank Shekhar Singh, who heads a committee that is reviewing the state’s retail and farm policies, refused to comment “before submitting a report to the chief minister”.

Some panel members, however, said the only option was “limited opening of the retail market to industrialists” and making them subject to the Uttar Pradesh Mandi Act which says retail stores can buy farm products only from the government-controlled mandis.

“There’s a strong demand for scrapping the mandi licence to Reliance. The government may have to do that to end the political agitation,” a committee member said.

The licence allows Reliance Fresh to buy directly from farmers.

“If our mandi licence is withdrawn, that’s the worst that can happen. The signals from the government to Reliance would then be negative,” a Reliance spokesman said.

The company had earlier announced it had put on hold its plans to open 102 Reliance Fresh stores and seven distribution centres in the state. Reliance wants full safety before launching or reopening outlets.