Vegatable prices soar by 50%

Vegatable prices soar by 50%
TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Bangalore: Vegetable prices at private retail outlets shot up by over 50% on Thursday as people resorted to panic buying and hoarding following shortage of stock. The prices of tomato, onion, potato, chillies, beans, peas, raddish and carrot went up by about 50% on Thursday morning. The strike began on Wednesday midnight.
The silver lining was that Hopcom centres remained largely untouched by this. The 450-plus Hopcoms outlets across the city sold vegetables at normal rates. Some vegetables were priced lower than the past few days. Vegetables, whose prices were actually lower, are capsicum (Rs 19.50, lower by Rs 5), carrot (down to
Rs 25 from Rs 28), cabbage (Rs 11 from Rs 14), peas (Rs 37 from Rs 48) and cauliflower (Rs 9 from Rs 10 per piece). Hopcoms vendors assured buyers that vegetables would be available and asked them not to hoard them. Eggs were also slightly lower (at Rs 1.70 each).
The vegetable mandi at Kalasipalya wore a deserted look on Thursday afternoon with most traders downing shutters. The market normally trades about 500 tonnes of vegetables during the lean season and about 700 tonnes in the peak season.
Vegetable merchants association president R V Gopi said, “Vegetable markets at Banaskankari, Madiwala, K R Puram, Malleshwaram and other areas are also set to join the strike.’’
Wholesale fruit markets were also closed on Thursday. The city consumes 300 tonnes of mosambi, 150 tonnes of apples, 135 tons of pomegranates, papaya 100 tonnes. Fruit rates were hiked by about 25 per cent, though the prices at Hopcoms outlets remained stable.
Rs 100-crore loss
The Yeshwantpur APMC market, with 2,500 wholesale shops, remained closed on Thursday, as did the 144 APMC yards, 250 subyards and 700 local markets across the state.
The loss over two days is about Rs 100 crore. The loss to the state exchequer is said to be Rs 4 crore through the two days.
Prices of commodities like oil, sugar, pulses and rice have remained stable but could shoot up over the next week if the strike is not called off, since wholesale traders have stopped picking up fresh stock.
About 10,000 traders will march from New Thargupet to Town Hall on Saturday in protest.
FKCCI chairman of the APMC committee, Ramesh Lahoti, said, ‘‘We have sent a memorandum listing out our demands to the government and are still waiting a response. Ryot sanghas are going to join our protest on Saturday.’’
toiblr.reporter@timesgroup.com