An official in Russia's Yakutia region has put out a public tender for traditional souvenir bowls at prices up to six times higher than the market rate, according to documents on the state's own procurement portal.
Vasily Andreev, the acting head of the Khangalassky district (known locally as an ulus), is seeking to purchase 83 porcelain bowls, called kytyia, for a total of 498,000 rubles (approx. $5,500). The tender values each bowl at 6,000 rubles.
However, the average retail price for these traditional Yakut items—often used for serving fermented mare's milk, or kumis—is between 500 and 1,500 rubles. Even a custom-made, individually designed bowl costs no more than 4,000 rubles, making the government's procurement price tag unusually high.
The order, first flagged by a local Telegram channel, is not the first lavish purchase made by Andreev’s administration this year. In April, the official placed an order for six gold watches worth a combined 480,000 rubles, including five men's watches and one women's watch valued at over 107,000 rubles.