Vegetables costlier by almost 50%

Unseasonal rains and water shortage in some parts of the state have resulted in prices of vegetables going up in the wholesale markets.

While the price of almost every vegetable, except onion and potato, has gone up by 25 to 30 per cent in the wholesale market, price in the retail market is a staggering 45 to 50 per cent more.

“The supply of vegetables from across the state and neighbouring states like Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh has declined considerably following odd weather,” said APMC director Ashok Gawade. Gawade admits that some retailers have been taking benefit of the shortage by hiking prices.

There has been a price hike in beans, cucumber, ladies finger, pea, coriander leaves, cauliflower, cabbage, beat root, chili and capsicum. Madhav Shintre at Mafco’s retail market at Sanpada said the prices were fluctuating during the past week but have now gone up substantially following unseasonal rains across the state.

“Flower is getting dearer as opposed to the annual slump during this season,” said Harshita Pasarkar, a resident of Chembur.

“Against the average unloading of 500 trucks of vegetable stock in the APMC market daily, only 350 trucks make it to the yards now,” said Gawade adding that more than 50 per cent of the stock coming to the market was spoilt.

Majority of the stock comes from villages in Pune, Nashik, Western Maharashtra, Belgaon, Indore, Gwalior, Gujarat, Jaipur and parts of Andhra and Karnataka.

However, the prices of onion are stable at Rs6 per kg in the retail market. Price of potatoes on the other hand has come down to Rs6 per kg from Rs7 per kg. In the fruit market the apple varieties have also gone up by 15 to 20 per cent. Prices of sweet lime, chickoo, grapes and pears have risen.

Prices of grain and edible oil have also gone up. The price of grain in the APMC wholesale grain market during the last one month varied from Rs200 to Rs350 per quintal. “The rate in retail markets is therefore more and is sometimes double,” said Sharad Maru, an office bearer in the grain market association.

The rise is being attributed to unwarranted stocking by food processing companies. At Daily Bazaar, a retail chain, wheat prices have gone up to Rs21 per kg from Rs16 per kg. Similarly, the price of rice like Suarati Kolam is Rs31 kg against the earlier Rs25. Sugar, which cost Rs1,475 per quintal a month back, now costs Rs 1,650. 

“Price of edible oil now varies from Rs105 to Rs120 per kg against Rs85 to Rs100 per kg earlier,” said Vinayak Joshi, business head of Daily Bazaar chain of retail markets. However, Joshi said that it is actually inflation and not excess hiking.

According to Chunnilal Chheda excess export of rice and dal and untimely rains were two reasons behind the recent hike. Irregular stocking, increasing demand in domestic and international markets are reasons for the rise in prices in the retail market.

“Excessive export of Basmati has triggered the price hike, while unseasonal rain has affected gram and masoor,” said Maru.adding that bonus to farmers, service tax, increased freight charges and bad maintenance of supply lines were other factors. According to him, except in Punjab and Haryana, the yield per acre had not increased remarkably in recent years. Prices of floor, semolina and Maida too have gone up due to increase in price of wheat. Meanwhile, the prices of potatoes, masoor, jawar, bajra, corn and other essential commodities are stable.