Introduction:
Via the National Cooperative Consumers’ Federation of India (NCCF) and the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India, the Center is selling Price of Tomatoes Prevails to the public at a discounted rate of Rs 80 per kg in Delhi-NCR and several other important cities (NAFED).
To help the average person from paying high retail rates, the Union government has decreased the cost of subsidized tomatoes from Rs 80 per kilogram to Rs 70 per kilogram as of Thursday. The said prices of tomatoes can be seen in the Delhi-NCR region and some other parts of the country, thanks to a cautious intervention by NCCF and NAFED.
According to previous reports, tomatoes were touching an all-time high price of around ₹150 per kilogram. Some cities reported prices of tomatoes have gone way beyond ₹150 per kilogram. Counting the 29 states, the average is somewhere around ₹120 per kilogram.
Though the prices are now lower for a specific region, the center clarifies that soon price of tomatoes will come down in all cities in the country, and people can afford to eat tomatoes again. Though come anti-tomato hive of people may seem cool with the heavy increase in the price of the vegetable, it has posed damages to many households where tomatoes are important or loved.
A statement from the center said that the Department of Consumer Affairs directed the National Cooperative Consumers’ Federation of India (NCCF) and the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (NAFED) to sell tomatoes at a lower price in some regions. The official statement also read that the decline in tomato prices is evident, and it is no longer that people will be able to afford tomatoes again.
Price of Tomatoes Prevails (Image Source: telanganatoday.com)
As Per the Statement, the NCCF and NAFED:
procured tomatoes at ₹90 per kilogram only to sell them at a lower price of ₹70-80 per kilogram. “The reduction to Rs 70 per kg will further benefit the consumers,” the statement read.
To begin procuring tomatoes from mandis (Hindi for vegetable stalls or markets) in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Maharashtra for simultaneous distribution in key consumption centers where retail prices have seen the greatest increase in the past month, NCCF and NAFED followed the government’s instructions.
According to the statement released by the center, “The retail sale of tomatoes in Delhi-NCR had started from July 14, 2023. Till July 18, 2023, a total of 391 tonnes of tomato had been procured by the two agencies which are being continuously disposed of to the retail consumers in major consumption centers of Delhi-NCR, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and Bihar.”
Price of Tomatoes Prevails:
With all the variations in the price of tomatoes across the country, the data calculated by the Department of Consumer Affairs tell us that the average price of the vegetable is at ₹120 per kilogram, and the maximum price has reached ₹245 per kilogram at some places, the modal price is at ₹120 per kilogram, and the minimum price of tomato people have seen is ₹40 per kilogram.
The price variations are similar in metro cities. In Mumbai, Chennai, and Kolkata, the price of tomatoes is around ₹145-155 per kilogram. While the price is already so high, the effect of the monsoon has taken it even higher. As per the trend, tomato prices shoot up annually during monsoon as it disrupts supply, which causes an increase in demand. To fill those demands, tomato price goes up. In the current scenario, where the price is already so high, people must expect to see the price constant or increase in days ahead.
