Hyderabad: Prices of essential commodities have seen a sudden rise this month and one has to shell out between 15 and 30 per cent more for them. The rates of pulses, rice and wheat have substantially increased while the prices of oils have shown marginal increase. The price of 1 kg moong dal, which was around Rs 130 per kg, has crossed the '154-mark this month.
All the malls in the city, like Heritage Fresh, More, D Mart, Balaji and even bigger super markets have been selling the commodities more or less at these rates, giving different reasons for the increase. Meanwhile, the middle class has been forced to bear the brunt in the absence of regular government monitoring. Traders have different theories about the price rise.“Transportation costs have gone up and unless we mark up to an extent, it’s difficult to sustain,” said Ravi Kiran, sales manager of Balaji Group.
Though a few mentioned increased VAT, it is actually not the case as VAT is still being collected at 5 per cent. “During the Rabi season, the yield has come down and this is an all-India phenomenon. Earlier, raw toor was costing around Rs 4,000 per quintal; it has gone up to Rs 6,000 now. Sowing has decreased and in Telangana alone, it has fallen by nearly 36 per cent. So when there is less supply, the costs will automatically go up,” said Som Narayana, category manager of Heritage Fresh. “This is a tax-saving month. How can we make do with these prices?” asked D.S. Narayana, a former faculty of OU.
The state government, meanwhile, has not intervened in the market. “We are watching the situation and we convened a meeting of all stake-holders on February 20. The chief secretary will take stock of the situation,” said Parthasarathy, secretary of civil supplies in the Telangana.
