Hyderabad, December 14: The temperature has been falling steadily this December but there isn’t a similar downward trend in the case of vegetable and foodgrain prices.
One of the reasons, say Agriculture Marketing officials, is the increased real estate activity around Hyderabad.
This has shrunk the cultivable land around the city, leading to higher vegetable prices. The increasing distance between the location of cultivation and the place of marketing is leading to a surge in prices.
“As a result of increase in distance, the transport costs have also increased.
Earlier, most of the vegetable requirements of Hyderabad were met by
Vikarabad. But because of the real estate activity, sowing has come down
in this area and we now have to go up to Tandur,” Commissioner of Agriculture
Marketing AR Sukumar told Expresso. He also said that increased labour
costs have added to the rise in vegetable prices. According to officials, there
has been a 17.4 per cent increase in overall vegetable prices compared to
last year. The prices of potato, lady finger, carrot, beans, beetroot, tindora (Donda), taro root (chaama gadda)and brinjal have sky-rocketed. Among all the vegetables, potato saw a huge jump in its price which till a month ago was between Rs 10 and Rs 12 in all the regulated markets. But it costs Rs 20 and
above today. Agriculture Marketing officials said there is not much they can do as the State is a large importer of potatoes. Andhra Pradesh is mostly ependent on Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Punjab and other north-Indian states for its
potato requirement. The continuous increase of carrot prices remains a concern as the poor and middle-class are not in a position to purchase the vegetable. From the last four months, carrot is mostly sold between Rs 16 and Rs 30. The existing price in regulated markets is Rs 22.
The most commonly used vegetables in Telugu households are lady finger, Tindora, potato, onion, tomatoes and beans. “Given the existing prices, I spend Rs 100 to buy a kg each of four or five vegetables. The stocks are exhausted within three or four days. Money just vanishes when buying vegetables,” V Bhargavi, a lab technician and a resident of Ameerpet says. Marketing officials say the drought
and floods during the kharif season have added to the already soaring prices.
The biggest impact on the common man is the continuous increase of rice and red gram (kandi pappu). Today, superfine rice, the most preferred variety of rice in Hyderabad and other surrounding districts is available between Rs 35 and Rs 40. Approximately a year back, the superfine rice was available at Rs 25. Similar is the case with Red Gram as the A-Grade quality costs between Rs 90 and Rs 100 in contrast to the Rs 75 six months earlier.
——Agencies