Andhra Pradesh unlikely to provide subsidy for vegetables

Vijayawada: The cash-strapped Andhra Pradesh government seems to be unable to initiate market intervention to help consumers get vegetables at an affordable price.

Earlier, when the price of onions shot up to Rs 100 per kg, causing hardships to consumers to purchase them, the state government intervened and brought thousands of tonnes of onions from parts of Maharashtra and sold at a subsidised price of Rs 25 per kg at Rythu Bazars while bearing the remaining amount on its own to avoid any trouble to consumers.

A comparative look at the prices of some vegetables like tomato and onion indicates the rise in their prices. For instance, a kilogram of tomatoes was sold at Rs 56 at local market and at Rs 51 at Rythu Bazar in cyclone-hit Srikakulam district on October 18 and on September 20, a kilogram of tomatoes was sold at Rs 24 at local market and at Rs 19 at Rythu Bazar in Srikakulam district indicating more than 100 per cent rise in prices at local market and more than 200 per cent rise at Rythu Bazar. Similarly, a kilogram of onions was sold at Rs 44 at local market and at Rs 40 at Rythu Bazar in West Godavari on October 18 while they were sold at Rs 28 at local market and at Rs 26 at Rythu Bazar in the same district on September 20. Similar is the case with several other vegetables whose prices have gone up presently.

Horticulture joint director K. Balaji Naik said, “Though several horticulture crops including vegetables were affected under the influence of Cyclone Gulab, the quantum of damages is less and the rise in prices of vegetables is also less. It will only be for a short period as stocks of vegetables from unaffected areas are being sent to the markets in affected areas in the state.”

On the other hand, marketing sources say as the prices of some vegetables like tomato and onions are going up, the state government can intervene as it used to do earlier and come to the rescue of both the consumers and farmers.

A senior official from the marketing department said, “The state government may not give some subsidy to certain varieties of vegetables whose prices are going up as it is not having adequate funds to do so. Moreover, the state government seems to be allowing farmers to make some money by rise in prices as they always suffer losses due to dip in prices.”

Meanwhile, the horticulture authorities enumerated the damages to several crops under the impact of the cyclonic storm Gulab recently and as per their report, several varieties of horticultural crops being raised in 1,754.07 hectares suffered damage affecting 6,912 farmers in five districts including Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, Visakhapatnam, East Godavari and Krishna. The estimated input subsidy to be given to the affected farmers is Rs 391.73 lakh. Out of total damages to the horticulture crops, vegetables suffered damages in 103.85 hectares affecting 454 farmers with the input subsidy to be given, estimated at Rs 15.58 lakh.