What could be worrisome is the predicted increase in onion prices as the old stock gets over and the new crop is expected to arrive after a gap of few weeks.
A dip in mercury has led to the increase in prices of some vegetables like okra and guar gum in the city. As arrivals dip, these vegetables would slowly phase-out of the markets in the next few weeks. While the rare mango sneaked in well out of season, what could be worrisome is the predicted increase in onion prices as the old stock gets over and the new crop is expected to arrive after a gap of few weeks.
So far, guar gum is the costliest vegetable retailing at Rs 70 per kg at Pune’s wholesale market. Okra is now at Rs 40 per kg. Tomato, which till last week was around Rs 7 per kg, has also increased to Rs 8/-per kg with traders not ruling out a further rise in the days to come. The next few weeks actually would see a transition from the Kharif produce to rabi crops and thus a shortfall in supplies is not ruled out.
This is especially true for onions as the rabi produce stored by farmers in March-April has now finished and the kharif and late kharif crops would start in all force. At present, onion prices in Pune’s wholesale market are around Rs 34 per kg while those in retail markets are well above Rs 40. Similarly, tomato prices in the retail markets are above Rs 20 per kg with most other vegetables retailing at Rs 10-40 per kg. Guar gum and okra nearing Rs 100 per kg.
So far, the newsmaker of the week was the odd boxes of Begumpalli and Lalbaug mangoes which arrived from Karnataka. These mangoes had landed in Pune’s market through a trader and as expected were priced at Rs 120-140 per kg. Traders in Pune’s market have assured that the real season of mangoes would be starting post-April and there is a bumper crop in the offing.
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