Sharp fall in vegetable prices, lack of cash hit farmers, traders

Bengaluru, Dec 29: Even though the sharp fall in the price of vegetables is a good news for common man, farmers and traders are distressed by the unexpected upheavals. On the other hand shortage of cash, a consequence of demonetisation, has had an adverse impact on vegetable business.

The wholesale price of a few vegetables has declined by 50%. The president of vegetable merchants' association, RV Gopi attributed the drastic fall in prices to the surplus stock.

"As a result of demonetisation, farmers and merchants are in no position to send vegetables to Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh. As a result, most of the stock is ending up at the local markets in Bengaluru. Consequently, the price of the vegetables has come down by 30% to 40% on average," Gopi said adding that farmers and merchants were hoping for a revival in January.

Paramesh V, a resident of Vidyaranyapura in north Bengaluru, is certainly not complaining. He stocks up on all the vegetables he needs for the entire week in one visit to the KR Market. "The vegetables here are fresh, and in comparison to the local markets, it is a lot cheaper. Moreover, the prices have dropped drastically in the past few weeks," he said.

Traders get vegetables to the city from Hoskote, De vanahalli, Anekal, Kanakapura, Mandya, Hassan and even Belagavi.

Nataraju MN, a vegetable trader, pointed out that merchants and farmers carried out most of their transactions in cash. "Not all farmers have bank accounts, and it takes time for everyone to get accustomed to cashless transactions. The cap on withdrawal from our bank accounts has impacted our earnings. Many traders send nearly 10 trucks to other states daily, and advance payment to truck drivers and others are made in cash. They need cash in lakhs," he added.