Amid the promises of the State government to arrest the spiralling prices of essential commodities, pricey staples such as onion, tomato and red gram kept the consumers on the edge this year.
It all began with the prices of onions going through the roofs owing to acute shortage in the markets in July and soon tomatoes and red gram followed the suit.
Onion literally left the consumers in tears with the prices touching Rs.100 a kg in retail market while that of tomatoes crossed Rs.80 per kg. Red gram prices too hovered between Rs.200 and Rs.210 a kg.
Concerned over the rising prices, the government swung into action and ensured supply of the staples on subsidy, giving the much-needed relief to buyers.
But soon the shops selling subsidised vegetables saw jostling crowds in their hurried effort to get their grab. At one stage, the government enforced the rule of producing Aadhaar card for buying two kilos onion at a subsidized rate of Rs.20 a kilo. The subsidy was later withdrawn when the rate came down.
According to officials, the government spent Rs. 68.63 crore for procuring 18,896 metric tonnes of onion from the Kurnool market yard, the largest onion market in the State, to ensure sufficient supply to Rythu Bazaars across the State.
However, the rising demands and hurried procurement benefited over 3,225 farmers and more than 94,47,726 consumers as well , authorities claimed.
Even before consumers tried to overcome the onion price, they bore the brunt of rising prices of red gram that touched Rs.210 a kg due to short supply. Bezawada Dal Traders’ Association members said the main reason for price escalation was low production due to deficit rainfall. Another factor was hoarding by traders in Mumbai, who purchased stocks online from Africa and Turkey.
After drawing criticism from public, the government convened a meeting with dal millers and traders and asked them to sell red gram at a subsidised rate of Rs.140 a kg in wholesale and Rs.143 in retail market till December 31. Officials from Civil Supplies Department said the price of red gram was expected to go down once fresh stocks enter the AP market from Telangana. Stocks from Tandur and Vikarabad in Ranga Reddy district, Sangareddy, Zaheerabad and Sadasivapet in Medak district, and Suryapet in Nalgonda will enter the market shortly.
“We can also depend on stocks available in Krishna and Guntur districts between February and March and thereafter on the arrivals from Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka,” an official explained.
After onions and red gram, it was the turn of tomato prices that hit the roof. The price soared from Rs.16 per kilo to Rs.45 in Vijayawada, depending on quality and class of outlet.
In supermarkets, it was sold for Rs.45-50 a kilo, while pushcart vendors offered for Rs.80 a kilo.
In view of problems faced due to shortage of onion and pulses, Marketing Department has come up with a proposal to set up five godowns at Kurnool Market Yard, and another one at Mydukur in Kadapa district, under pilot project to store commodities and release them in the market whenever there is shortage.
