At Apni Mandi in Sector 34, Chandigarh, on Sunday. (Express Photo by Jasbir Malhi)
TOMATO PRICES in the city have gone through the roof, with one kilogramme of it costing between Rs 75 and Rs 80 on Sunday. The tomatoes cost around Rs 20 to Rs 25 per kilogramme earlier.
Tomato sellers assert that because of no supply from Nasik during this season and limited supply from Himachal Pradesh, the rates have skyrocketed. On Saturday, the price went even up to Rs 100. Chandigarh gets its supply of tomatoes from Nasik and Haldwani in normal season which is stopped during the rains.
“During monsoon, supply of tomatoes comes from Himachal. Now there is a lot of demand for tomatoes and the supply is falling short. That’s why the rates have gone so high,” said Desraj, president of Small Vegetable Sellers’ Association. He added that the rates were expected to hover between Rs 65 and Rs 80 for two more months.
Housewives complain that the price of tomatoes are costing more than a packet of paneer. “A branded paneer pack of 200 gram costs Rs 60 and tomatoes are costing even more than that. I purchased tomatoes for Rs 100 yesterday from my local vegetable seller. When I asked, he said that he too was paying a hefty price for the tomatoes,” said Rashmi, a resident of Sector 21.
Many homemakers now prefer to use one tomato in a vegetable. “I have told my maid to put only one tomato in any vegetable she cooks. Earlier, she would put at least three. The rates are so high these days that we can’t afford to eat tomatoes,” said Rajni Lata.
Even the hoteliers are using less tomatoes in their vegetables. “We have been told by our supervisor to use tomatoes less even in the vegetable curries because of high rates. But a vegetable doesn’t taste good until we have tomatoes in it,” said a chef working at a prominent hotel in the city.
