Onion, tomato prices soar in city on supply shortage

New Delhi: Shortage of vegetable supply from other states has led to a surge in the prices of onions and tomatoes in the city.

While the retail price of tomato has gone up to Rs 60 per kg and more, onions are selling anything between Rs 45 and Rs 55 per kg. Green pea, which is a winter vegetable, is being sold at Rs 70 per kg and above.

The intermittent rise and fall in the prices of vegetables has become a regular phenomenon in the city.

Delhi is heavily dependent on supply of vegetables from other states and any shortage in supply results in price hikes invariably. The shortage in supply of tomatoes and onions from Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Himachal Pradesh, and Haryana has significantly increased the current rates.

At APMC (agricultural produce market committee) Azadpur the maximum price of onion was Rs 3,250 per quintal on Saturday as against that of Rs 2,450 of a couple of weeks ago while the maximum price of tomatoes was Rs 5,714 per quintal as against that of Rs 2,796 of a few days ago.

“Frequent rains have not only damaged the tomato crop in big producing states, but has also affected transportation,” said the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) deputy director (horticulture) A.K. Singh.

Nisha Sharna, a housewife, said, “Tomato is selling at a steep price of Rs 55 per kg and above. The fluctuation in vegetable prices takes place on a routine basis now and this is a matter of concern as this completely shakes our monthly budget.”

Others also complained that the sharp hike in vegetable prices wrecks havoc on their monthly budget.

“I have come to Delhi for studies, but this up and down game of vegetables rates, costs us very much. Most of the time we don’t buy tomatoes and onions so as to adjust our monthly expenditure,” Neeraj, a DU student who came from Varanasi last year, said.

The government should take serious action to keep in check the prices of vegetables and fruits.

“Earlier, the Delhi government constituted various teams of officers and directed them to submit a daily report on the prices of vegetables in the wholesale markets. A huge variation between retail and wholesale prices indicates that the possibility of these commodities being hoarded could not be ruled out,” an official of the food and civil supplies department said.