LUDHIANA: The high retail prices of vegetables have started affecting the lives of residents. The unforeseen weather conditions in the past few days have severely damaged crops in Punjab.
Capsicum rate has increased from Rs40 to Rs80;
cauliflower has jumped to Rs40-60, where earlier it was Rs20 only;
coriander prices have hiked from Rs10-20 to Rs80. A similar kind of increase is seen in other vegetable prices. A bulk of the problems are faced by residents who have to buy vegetables from retail shops. These prices are expected to further increase.
Gurjot, a vegetable vendor in
Civil Lines, states: “Every year, the monsoon season affects the production of vegetables in Punjab. The crops are damaged due to excessive rains, and there is no particular system to stop rainwater from flooding the fields, which further lowers their availability in the market. Although we get supplies from other cities and states, they also increase the prices due to the rains, which directly affects the lives of residents.”
He adds: “Our sales never get affected, because people can never stop consuming vegetables.We get supplies from HP, Nasik, Malerkotla, and some regions of Punjab, but as the supplies are less, the wholesale as well as retail prices get hiked. The thing is people who don’t have any option other than buying vegetables from retail shops have to face the brunt of price hikes a bit harder than the others.”
“For ladies like us who can’t afford to go to wholesale shops, we have to buy veggies from these retail shops, and it is exhausting to spend so much on vegetables alone. Our whole budget goes haywire due to these rates. Each and every year during monsoon, rates are hiked, and this time it is very hard for all people,” says Palak, residing in Model Town.
Sonia, another resident of Dugri, says: ‘I am a middle-class housewife, and there are eight family members in the house to cook food for our joint family. I buy vegetables from a retail shop nearby, and the increased prices have completely shaken our lives. To manage the budget, along with cooking enough food for my family members, is a very dicey job. We know it happens every year, but still the struggle is very hard.”
The rates of vegetables are expected to rise further in the coming days.
Representative image