Drumsticks and beans double in price as Yadgir vegetable market faces supply squeeze

Drumsticks and beans have surged to ₹100 per kilogram in Yadgir's open market, even as most other vegetables held steady over recent days.

Tomatoes bucked the trend in the opposite direction, plummeting to ₹30 a kg from ₹60 just a week earlier, while onions edged up slightly to ₹60 a kg. Bitter gourd, cucumber, potato and lady's finger remained unchanged, selling between ₹50 and ₹60 a kg.

Supply chain shapes daily rates

Mohammad Nawaz, a local vegetable vendor, attributed the onion swings to fluctuating volumes of arrivals from outside the district. "Onion prices fluctuate depending on the volume of arrivals from outside. However, tomato prices have decreased within the week, dropping to ₹30 a kg from ₹60 a kg," he said.

Yadgir depends almost entirely on produce trucked in from Kalaburagi, Vijayapura, Raichur and Kurnool in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh because of scant local cultivation. Mallikarjun Patil, a local buyer, explained that high-volume arrivals from nearby suppliers keep prices stable, but frequent transit disruptions push retail rates upward. "If the district headquarters receives a high volume of vegetable arrivals from local suppliers, prices stay stable. Otherwise, prices always fluctuate," he said.

Hybrid versus local carrots

Traders noted a split in consumer preference for salad staples such as carrots and cucumbers. Sharana Basava, who runs a local restaurant, said the market currently receives larger supplies of hybrid carrots, which differ noticeably in taste from local varieties. "There is a distinct difference in taste between local and hybrid carrots. Most households prefer local varieties for home-cooked meals, whereas hybrid carrots are mostly bought by restaurants," he said.

The price movements underscore Yadgir's vulnerability to supply-chain bottlenecks, with external sourcing leaving shoppers exposed to abrupt swings in staple costs.

Source: The Hindu