Vegetable Prices Soar in Hyderabad

City dwellers are looking for alternative substances that provide a sweet-sour and tangy taste and a characteristic red colour, as the price of tomatoes, among other fruits, vegetables and essential commodities, continues to rise uncontrolled amid a lack of governmental intervention.

The poor and the middle class are bearing the brunt as the state government, unlike its counterparts Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh, has come to the rescue of the people by setting up a market intervention fund or price stabilisation fund. 

While the neighbouring states are supplying vegetables for subsidised rates through government outlets, there is no such initiative in Telangana, taking tomatoes past the Rs 100 mark (per kg) in the retail market. All other vegetables have also become expensive in the past four weeks.

Although Rs 1,000 crore was sanctioned in the state Budget towards the market intervention fund, the funds are not being utilised. The last instance of using these funds was in 2015, to supply onions and red gram for subsidised rates when the onion price crossed the Rs 100 mark per kg and toor dal touched a price of Rs 150 per kg.

Then, the state government supplied onions for a highly subsidised price of Rs 20 per kg to all Rythu



Bazaars in the state. It also supplied red gram (toor dal) for a subsidised price of Rs 50 per kg, through ration shops.

However, the state government has consistently ignored skyrocketing prices over the past eight years.

Tomatoes were not alone in crossing the Rs 100 mark, with green chillis costing upwards of Rs 120 per kg, and other vegetables mostly in the range of Rs 70-Rs 90 per kg.

The neighbouring Andhra Pradesh government has subsidised tomato prices by over half the price, launching sales at Rs 50 per kg from Thursday through Rythu Bazaars across the state. The Tamil Nadu government has also launched the sale of tomatoes for a subsidised price of Rs 60 per kg.

While the public demand for price control is getting louder, the state government is yet to hold a review meeting to take stock of rising prices and discuss measures to control the prices.

The marketing department handles the procurement of stocks and setting up outlets for subsidised sales. Agriculture minister S. Niranjan Reddy, who personally handles the marketing department, however, was not available for comment. Repeated attempts to reach him on Thursday were in vain.