New Delhi: Retail prices of leafy vegetables like spinach and other winter staples such as carrots, cauliflower and peas have shot up as much as 67 percent in the national capital over the last five days due to unseasonal rains.
Retail prices of vegetables are expected to be under pressure for the next two days due to tight supplies as the wholesale markets will remain closed for Holi on Friday, traders said.
However, there is no supply constraint for potato and onion, and their prices are stable, a senior Union agriculture ministry official said.
"Due to waterlogging, harvesting of some vegetables has been delayed. There is 30-35 percent jump in rates of leafy green vegetables and 20-50 percent in other vegetables," Azadpur Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC) member Rajendra Kumar told PTI.
Small Farmers' Agriculture-Business Consortium (SFAC) managing director Pravesh Sharma said that there is no problem in onion and potato supply. Farmers are draining out excess water from fields and logistics problems have also caused to tight supply situation in some vegetables.
Mother Dairy's Safal outlets are selling potato at Rs 11.90 per kg and onion at Rs 30 per kg on Thursday. Even vegetable hawkers are selling these two commodities more or less at these rates.
However the sharp jump in retail prices have been seen in leafy vegetables and some winter vegetables. The prices in unorganised markets vary in different colonies.
"The supply of spinach is not much in mandis as the crop is waterlogged due to recent unseasonal rains. The supply is expected to improve after Holi when Farmers will resume harvesting," a trader at Okhla mandi said.
