Rates of tomatoes at Kalamna jumped to Rs14/kg from Rs8/kg before the strike. Carrots, which were over Rs8/kg, jumped to nearly double, cauliflower was Rs 25/kg, up from Rs12/kg before the strike. Green chillies flared to Rs 80-100/kg in the wholesale market from Rs 55-60/kg. The rates of chillies are already on a higher side due to a poor crop this year, said a broker. The market is closed on Fridays, which means there may be no fresh supplies at Kalamna, said sources.Neighbourhood vendors were selling tomatoes at about Rs40/kg, double the pre-strike rates. Cauliflower was Rs 30/kg, again double what it was before the strike, spinach, which was just Rs20/kg shot to Rs80/kg, said a retail vendor at Dharampeth. Coriander was Rs100/kg, from Rs20-30/kg a day ago, said the vendor. Drumstick was simply not available, and the limited stock was sold at Rs150/kg at the semi-wholesalers’ end in Cotton Market, said the seller. Although a section of vendors also said it was too early to panic, the e-commerce giants continued with their deep discount rates, and deliveries were not affected, said sources.Kalamna received around 430 quintals of vegetables on Thursday. On a normal day, it ranges from 9,000-10,000 quintals of an entire range of fresh vegetables. However, whatever came was auctioned, and the commission agents not on strike were able to operate without any hassle, said an official at the APMC committee. This included a single truck of carrot, 8 pick-up vehicles with peas, and a pick-up truck of vegetables like tomatoes, fenugreek, round gourd, bitter gourd, and brinjals that reached the market. One reason for the low supply can be because the markets are closed on Friday. Once it resumes on Saturday, the supplies are expected to easily touch 5,000 quintals at least, said an APMC official. Moreover, the farmers can unload their stock at the Cotton Market within the city too, the officer said.The strike has its roots over a dispute over allocation of sheds at Kalamna APMC after the traders were shifted from Cotton Market. The matter is being heard at the directorate of cooperative marketing, which is also a quasi-judicial body, said an officer. No decision can be taken on the striking traders’ demand as the matter being sub judice, the officer said. The Jai Kisan Vyapari Sangh has alleged that the allocations were made favouring the members of Yuva Adatiya Sangh a rival guild. Members of the latter are not on a strike, however a section of them also accepted that the strike had left its impact.
