Cuttack, Odisha: Truck drivers are bribing officials to sneak past checkpoints, allowing trucks loaded with potatoes from West Bengal to enter Odisha despite a ban on interstate movement of goods. Police are standing guard near the check gate, but the drivers are paying ₹20,000 per truck to bypass them. Trucks have arrived in Cuttack and Bhubaneswar, carrying potatoes from West Bengal. Some trucks were stuck at the Laxmannath toll gate in West Bengal but managed to reach the Bhubaneswar market.

The West Bengal administration has not given permission for potatoes to enter Odisha, but trucks have arrived secretly. Police are blocking and guarding the trucks at different locations, yet some have slipped through. Despite the smuggling, potato prices remain unchanged. Traders are selling potatoes at ₹45 per kilo, but displaying a price of ₹35 per kilo on their boards.
The lack of action from authorities has allowed the smuggling to continue, with no decision taken to address the issue. The public is being cheated, and traders are profiteering from the situation.