KARIMNAGAR: The floods in Andhra Pradesh have adversely impacted the price of tomatoes in Telangana’s Karimnagar district. The supply of the most sought-after vegetable was disrupted from Madanapalle, the tomato town of Andhra Pradesh, causing the sudden spike. For just 1 kg of tomatoes, one has to shell out Rs 100 or more.
Madanapalle in Chittoor district supplies a substantial quantity of tomatoes to Karimnagar, but with the floods wreaking a havoc in the region, there has been a drastic fall in the arrival of stocks. This, in turn, has resulted in the rise in prices of the few loads of tomatoes that have made it to Karimnagar from Madanapalle.
Kapelli Srinivas, a vegetable vendor at the Karimnagar market, said, “We are purchasing a 25-kg box at a price of Rs 2,300. After including the transportation charges, the price at which we buy tomatoes is Rs 96 per kg. If we get just Rs 4 on each kg sold, why are we even doing this business,” he asked, and pointed out wryly, “Sometimes, the boxes have damaged tomatoes.”
The major problem that the merchants are facing is the customers’ reluctance to buy tomatoes at such a high price. “We have no supplies from nearby areas either. Local farmers are raising tomato crop, but it will be ready only after one-and-a-half months,” Srinivas said.
Rs 100/kg is the price at which tomatoes are being sold in Karimnagar. Customers are reluctant to buy the vegetable at such high prices, say vendors. Before the AP floods, tomatoes were sold at Rs 30 per kg in the district