Vegetable prices in Kerala have continued to rise in the last two months. Vegetables arrived from Tamil Nadu continue to be sold at double the price in Kerala, despite the fact that trade middlemen are making a mint by selling to traders at a substantial margin.
Meanwhile, the arrival of 10 tonnes of tomato from Andhra Pradesh is likely to bring down its price in the state, while there has been no discernible change in the retail prices of most other vegetables despite direct procurement by the Kerala State Horticultural Products Development Corporation (Horticorp).
The intermediates in the vegetable trade in Tamil Nadu are reportedly creating artificial shortages of vegetables, thereby taking advantage of both vegetable dealers and customers in Kerala.
In Tamil Nadu, one kilo of lady finger costs Rs.32. However, when it reaches Kerala markets, the price per kg is Rs.50. Brinjal may be purchased in Tamil Nadu for Rs.50 per kg. In Kerala, the same quantity costs Rs.110. Big Chilly (Thondan Mulaku) costs Rs.110 per kg in Tamil Nadu and Rs.270 per kg in Kerala.
You will have to shell out double the price for a kilogram of curry leaves which is available for Rs.50 in Tamil Nadu. The same is the case with the price of other vegetables.
For several vegetables, the amount paid in Kerala is more than twice that of Tamil Nadu. Coriander leaves, which cost Rs.40 per kg in Bangalore, cost Rs.140 in Kerala.
Since November, Tamil Nadu-based agents have significantly raised the price of vegetables shipped to Kerala. They also thwarted the Kerala Agriculture Department's move to buy vegetables straight from Tamil Nadu markets through its agency Horticorp. The intermediaries purchase all the vegetables produced by the farmers at a low cost and then sell them to Kerala traders for double the price.
Vegetables arrive in Kerala mostly from Tamil Nadu's Tenkasi, Kambam, Theni, and Ottanchathiram districts.
AP Tomatoes
On Monday, 10 tonnes of tomatoes procured by Horticorp from the farmers in Andhra Pradesh's Mulakalacheruvu district arrived at the World Market in Anayara in Thiruvananthapuram district as part of efforts to control the open market price of tomatoes.
This purchase is in addition to the Horticorp's procurement of tomatoes and other vegetables from various locations in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.
Tomatoes were purchased on a huge scale to satisfy demand at the Agriculture Department's Christmas-New Year markets, according to Kerala Agriculture Minister P Prasad.
