Home kitchens turn too hot as green chilli prices surge

♦ Vegetable shops charging Rs 40 per 250g

♦ The prolonged dry spell could be one of the main reasons for low yielding of the essential commodity

♦ Rythu Bazars selling Chillies at Rs 100 per kg due to inadequate stock

The cost of vegetables has sky rocketed in the recent times in Telangana. After delicious Tomato, Green Chillies have become 'double hot ' as it's price hit the roof from Rs 40 to an exorbitant Rs 120 per Kg.

Thanks to the delay in the South West Monsoon. The prolonged dry spell could be one of the main reasons for low yielding of the essential commodity.

Rythu Bazars have been selling Chillies at Rs 100 per kg due to inadequate stock. Taking scarcity of the commodity as an advantage, super markets are fleecing the consumers by charging not less than Rs 140 per kg. Sellers were insisting the consumers to buy 1 kg at a fixed rate of Rs 100 in the Rythu Bazars. Vegetable shops are charging Rs 40 per 250g citing meagre stocks a main reason.

State Horticulture department officials said that normally Green Chilli’s production for daily use always meet the demand in the markets in every season. Telangana has been importing chillies from Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka where the yielding was high and has also seen good production in the State.

The major chilli growing districts - Khammam, Mahabubabad, Gadwal, Suryapet and Warangal (Rural) were facing deficit rainfall from June first week. As a result, yielding from the standing crops reduced drastically, said the officials adding that if these districts did not receive good rainfall in the current monsoon season, chilli production will go down drastically.

However, the neighbouring Andhra Pradesh, which was the largest Chilli producing State in the country, will come to the rescue of Telangana to meet the demand for chilli in July. Andhra chilli growers were expecting good rainfall in the catchment areas which helps to grow chilli fast and supply to Telangana in the next two weeks.

State Horticulture department was also taking measures to encourage the farmers to go for chilli crop to get good remunerative price in the coming season.