Visakhapatnam: In what may be another let down for people in the winter, prices of vegetables, fruits and flowers continue to soar in Vizag. The vegetable rates in Vizag have reached a record high of Rs 70-80 per Kg. Some vendors attributed the hike to the unseasonal October rains along with the recent rain and winds.
Tomato and onions are selling at Rs 50 and Rs 40 respectively. Carrot is selling at Rs 70 while beetroot and teasel gourd stand at Rs 60. The consumers are now feeling the pinch after prices of beans jumped to Rs 55 from Rs 40 a Kg while the price of brinjal touched Rs 40 a Kg. The prices of Okra, bitter gourd and cauliflower is around Rs 33 a kg in Rythu Bazaars while it costs 20 to 30 per cent more than this at retail markets around Visakhapatnam.
There was a gap between demand and supply in Vizag region following the decrease in the production of the vegetables due to various reasons. We have been procuring some vegetables from neighbouring Odisha in the result of a shortage of production says P Arun Kumar, a retail trader in Vizag city.
Not only vegetables but also the prices of fruits and flowers have increased by at least 30 percent in the past few weeks on the account Kartika month. If onions were not enough to bring tears to the eyes of consumers, vegetables, flowers and fruits added to our woes say N Anuradha, a housewife in Madhurawada area in the city.
Sources in horticulture department said that Vizag city requires around 6,000 quintals of vegetables a day but now there was a shortage of supply of most preferred vegetables. Similarly, there was a shortage of supply of fruits and flowers as the area under horticulture crops have been decreasing with the real-estate business.
