Veggie prices go northwards as Remal flattens standing crops
Times of India | 29 May 2024
Kolkata: Cyclone Remal has left a trail of devastation across south Bengal, inundating farm fields and severely damaging standing crops. The storm, which made landfall accompanied by torrential rain, wreaked havoc on summer vegetables, including ridged gourd, bitter gourd, eggplants, green chillies, beans and ladies’ fingers. Farmers and vendors warned that many of the vegetables would not be available in the market till the next cycle was harvested.
The impact was immediate and severe. Within a day of the cyclone’s landfall, the supply chain of vegetables to retail markets was disrupted, leading to a rise in prices. “Much of the crops got damaged in the field, despite our efforts of early retrieval. After the heavy rain, the rotting was faster,” said Arun Baidya, a farmer at Amdanga.
Vegetable prices surged following significant crop damage in Bhangar, Baruipur, Magrahat, Canning, Hasnabad and Basirhat. Rahim Molla, a cultivator in Bhangar, reported extensive damage to field vegetables, particularly in low-lying areas. The vegetables retrieved from the inundated fields both suffered in quality and quantity, leaving the demand-supply gap yawning. “The prices may shoot sharply in the next few days, till the next cycle of vegetables is harvested,” said Kamal De, president of the West Bengal Vendors’ Association. Highlighting the impact, he said farmers made distress sales of their produce at local markets from where middlemen bought those vegetables to sell them at a premium.
Bitter gourd, pointed gourd, cauliflower, capsicum, and green chilli have been the worst hit, as waterlogging damaged the roots, leading to substantial crop loss. Summer cauliflowers from Bhangar have been particularly affected.
According to Molla, the current high prices were just the beginning. “A gap in the demand and supply system is inevitable in coming days. Prices will definitely increase as it is not feasible to continue business while bearing the loss,” he said.
Subal Saha, a vegetable vendor at Lake Market, agreed that prices had indeed started to go up and that most of his available stock was old. “Prices have increased slightly for some items. But the rates will go up higher. Eggplant will not be available even at double the price. Prices of bitter gourd and cauliflower will exceed Rs 100 and continue to rise,” Saha said.