A huge inflow of rice from other states have apparently led to a fall in the price of rice, traders say.
What’s more, lovers of the commodity can be even more happy as the price could come down further in the coming months. But traders are not happy saying they are suffering heavy losses.
According to traders, the price of Ponni boiled rice (new) which was hovering around Rs 3,000 per bag of 74 kg (Rs 40.50 a kg) three days ago came down to Rs 2,750 on Saturday, while the cost of the next best quality (IR-20) fell to Rs 1,700 per bag from Rs 2,000. The price of CR rice too came down to Rs 1,600 per bag from Rs 1,900.
“We are worried about the current trend and if the situation continues, we may have to look at other options,” P Rajendran, district secretary, Rice Mills Owners and Paddy Rice Traders Association, said. Sales remained sluggish despite the low price, he added.
“TN saw only one samba crop this year due to poor monsoon. Scarcity of Cauvery water made the situation worse as far as paddy procurement was concerned,” Rajendran said.
The State is importing rice from states including Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and even Punjab. Predicting that price would fall further by next month, he said traders were paying a cess of `3 per bag of paddy. This cess should be done away with to reduce losses, he added.