CHENNAI/TIRUCHY/COIMBATORE: The market prices of flowers, several vegetables, fruits and prayer essentials have witnessed an abrupt spike across several districts of the state on the eve of Ayudha Pooja on Thursday.
One kg of jasmine (malli), usually priced around Rs 500-Rs 600, was selling at Rs 1,200-Rs 1,400 in Coimbatore market, where on the eve of the festival 50 tonnes of flowers have been stocked – 10 times higher than the everyday sale quantity. The market prices of most of the flowers surged by over 100%-120% in Coimbatore.
At the overcrowded Gandhi Market in Tiruchy on Thursday, the prices of flowers, especially malligai, mullai, and jathi, nearly tripled, with jasmine priced at Rs 800 per kg.
The Srirangam flower market also saw a surge of people purchasing flowers at prices higher than usual. In Madurai, oleander flowers were sold at Rs 800 per kg.
The flower prices generally go up in Nagapattinam markets closer to festival days, especially on Ayudha Pooja. Jasmine and Mullai were sold as high as Rs 800 and Rs 900 per kg, respectively, with their prices on non-festival days being Rs 250 and Rs 300, respectively. “We expect to get double the price on Ayudha Puja,” said MR Subramaniyan, a farmer from Adhanur in Vedaranyam block in Nagapattinam.
The festive demand in Madurai has greatly affected the price surge of prayer essentials, especially coconuts that were sold in markets for more than 80 per kg. As of Thursday, the wholesale market price for coconut was in the range of Rs 50-Rs 60.
The prices of vegetables and fruits also escalated across several districts, especially at the Koyambedu Market in Chennai, where a dip in supply, likely due to low yields, exacerbated the situation this festive season. The wholesale prices of both onion and tomato stood at Rs 70 per kg, yam at Rs 45 per kg, and green peas at Rs 150 per kg.
In Coimbatore, fruit prices have gone up by at least 20%, with lemon sold as high as Rs 260 per kg, up from Rs 10 per kg last week. Meanwhile, the price of tomatoes in Madurai district has gone down, with the rain greatly reducing its shelf life. Traders from other states are not showing interest in purchasing tomatoes from local cultivators. The tomato prices have dropped to around Rs 650 per 15-kg crate on Thursday, from Rs 900 last week.
