Tomato prices skyrocket

Mysuru: Every time one goes to a restaurant now-a-days, the eyes naturally scans the bill and is shocked to find the CGST and SGST taxes, which was not there earlier. The extra money that one pays burns a hole in the pocket. Added to this are a few more commodities, where the prices are skyrocketing and it is now the turn of the tomato that will make your pocket lighter. The rates of tomato have been steadily going up and the fine quality one in the market costs anywhere between Rs. 50 to Rs. 70 a kg. The smaller varieties cost between Rs. 45 to Rs. 50 and the medium sized tomatoes called the jam tomato in local parlance costs between Rs. 30 to Rs. 40 and the bigger sizes in the same variety between Rs. 40 to Rs. 50. The pushcart sellers sells it at Rs. 60 to Rs. 70 a kg. In the wholesale market, a crate of tomato weighing between 20 kgs to 24 kgs costs Rs. 800 and in the retail it is sold at Rs. 1,200 a crate. The Hopcoms, a Government outlet buys the tomatoes at Rs. 49.50 a kg and sells it at Rs. 62 a kg. Asked why they sell it at a higher than market price, the official told Star of Mysore that as it picks up only good quality tomatoes, the prices are higher. The reason for the tomato prices to go up is due to lack of sufficient rain. Moreover, this crop depends on water, a lot and a few grow it with borewell water, said a trader L.L.B. Ahmad Jaan and added that another reason for the hike is that most of it is exported to Tamil Nadu and Kerala. This results in shortage, which in turn leads to prices going northwards. Savitha, a housewife and a resident of Agrahara, was very stoic when she said that it is inevitable that the prices of vegetable and other commodities at times go up. “However, since the price of tomato has gone up, instead of buying a kg, I buy half a kg,” she said. Meanwhile, there is good news for beans eaters as prices have crashed from Rs. 80 a kg to Rs. 20 to Rs. 30 a kg. It is being sold at Hopcoms at Rs. 32 a kg.