New Delhi: As consumers wait for onion prices to cool down, retail prices of tomatoes have skyrocketed to Rs 60 per kg in the national capital. Mother Dairy's Safal outlets are selling tomatoes at Rs 44 per kg, double of Rs 20 per kg at which the staple was being sold a fortnight ago, while the local vendors are selling it for Rs 50-60 per kg depending upon the quality.
According to traders at Azadpur Mandi, tomato prices in the wholesale market have risen to Rs 30 per kg from Rs 10 per kg at the start of this month. "Supplies of tomatoes are under stress as the crop from nearby areas in Haryana have exhausted. Currently the supplies are coming mainly from Naryangaon in Maharashtra," Mother Dairy's Fruit and Vegetable Business Head Pradipta Sahoo told PTI. General Secretary, Tomato Merchants Association at Azadpur Mandi, Subhash Chuk said that in case of drought, production of tomatoes is estimated to be lower as it requires large amounts of water.
Chuk also pointed that prices may remain high in the national capital as supplies from all the adjoining northern states have been exhausted. According to Department of Consumer Affairs data, average prices of tomato across the country was Rs 40 per kg. As per the data, the highest price of tomato was Rs 57 per kg in Chennai followed by Rs 54 per kg in Bengaluru and Rs 48 per kg in Puducherry.
It showed that tomato prices were higher in southern and eastern parts of the country. Besides these, other cities which were also facing the heat of high tomato prices are Ahmedabad and Indore at Rs 45 per kg, while it was sold at Rs 40 per kg in Bhubaneshwar, Cuttack and Kolkata.
