Prices of majority of vegetables have registered a significant fall providing the much-needed relief to consumers embattling soaring prices over the last few months .
Sudden showers and release of water from the Mettur Dam have helped farmers register better harvest which in turn has led to improved arrivals in the market, wholesale dealers of Gandhi Market said.
Major villages noted for vegetable cultivation in Tiruchi district such as Allithurai, Ariyavur, Kannapuram, Konalai, Irungalur, Thayanur, and Kallakadu have shown improvement in harvest. And supplies from Ottanchathiram, Andimadam, Palayam (near Karur), and Dindigul have also increased significantly.
“Good arrivals from local villages over the past two weeks has had a cooling effect on the prices,” said A.Venkatesh, a retail vendor involved in the trade for the past two decades.
Fall in prices of vegetables for a short period of up to a week is, however, not unusual, they say. “But what stands out this time around is that the downward revision has been steady for the past three weeks,” said Mr. Venkatesh.
Farmers have been complaining about lack of water for irrigation affecting horticultural crops over the last few months. But the discharge from Mettur coupled with moderate showers in the peripheral areas has come as relief, he said.
This apart, simultaneous harvest of horticultural crops in places where paddy is grown has contributed to the better arrivals.
“Farmers have to prepare the fields for raising paddy nurseries and hence they harvest the vegetables,” the dealers said.
Huge arrivals have also helped keep tomato prices steady. The price of tomatoes that stood between Rs.30 and 50 per kg has now come down to Rs.10 or Rs.15.
“We handle about 500 kg of tomato each day,” said Abdul Wahith, a retailer at Gandhi Market. Till a couple of months back, we received stocks only from Mysore and Soolagiri, but now arrivals from Dharapuram and Tiruppur areas have picked up, he said.
Prices, however, would depend on monsoon over the next couple of months, dealers said. Well distributed rainfall in intermittent spells would ensure high yield. However, too much rain could destroy the roots of the plants, they feared.
