Acute shortage pushes vegetable prices go north

​Kothagudem: As the area under vegetable cultivation in the Bhadradri-Kothagudem district had shrunk to only 1,000 acres, vegetable traders in the district are forced to import at least 10,000 quintals of veggies daily from neighbouring Andhra Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.

Grave is the situation as the district is dependent on other states even for basic vegetables like tomato, coriander leaves etc. Vegetable output in the district is limited to just 3,000 quintals.

Barring lady’s finger and green leafy vegetables, there is no significant cultivation of other vegetables in the district.

The district has a population of over 10.69 lakh distributed among 3 lakh families. These families require 20,000 quintals of vegetables per week.

With the area and the output shrinking, vegetable prices in the open market are touching skies with tomato being sold at Rs 100 a kg, green chilli at Rs 120 and above.

Earlier, a consumer used to get at least a week’s requirement of vegetables for Rs 200 as against the current three or four day’s requirement.

The sorry state of affairs is attributed to the farmer evincing no interest in vegetable cultivation. Lack of motivation on the part of the farmer due to lack of incentives from the government is attributed for the prevailing situation.

Therefore, vegetables are being imported from Vijayawada, Jangareddigudem, Sattupalli, Guntur and Madanapalli and also from Chhattisgarh.

According to a farmer, Koteswara Rao, the district is endowed with rich soil but the farmer gets no incentives from the government. A kilogram of tomato was once sold at Rs 1, but it was now sold at Rs 100.

At a time when farmers shy away from tomato, its price in the market is on the rise. The state government and officials should focus on the issue, he said.

According to a retail trader of Bhadrachalam, Krishna, it is advisable to sell locally cultivated crops buying at throwaway price and sell it for a profit. The profitability would not be of much in selling vegetables imported at a higher price because there would be no takers for such vegetables.

According to horticulture officer J Marianna, farmers take three crops in more than 10,000 acres. The nosedive in prices is attributed to farmers raising the same type of vegetables.

Creepers and green leafy vegetable cultivation are always safe and cause no harm to farmer. He added that the department was inviting applications for allotment of poly houses on subsidy- 95 per cent for SCs and STs and 75 per cent for others.