The soaring prices of vegetables seems to have hit a ceiling. The only way is downward, thanks to the arrival of new crops

No more shedding tears of expensive onions. The prices of onions, potatoes, tomatoes and leafy vegetables appear to be stabilising after almost three months.



On Saturday, MiD DAY checked supplies at Vashi's APMC market, Mumbai's largest wholesale market that receives vegetables at the crack of dawn, before they are then distributed to various locals markets across the city.

Onions were available at Rs 13 to Rs 14 per kilo (that's down from Rs 60 per kilo at the height of inflation) while tomatoes were available for Rs 10 per kilo (as compared to Rs 30). Potatoes were selling between Rs 5 and Rs 8 a kilo (down fromu00a0 Rs 15 a kilo) and leafy vegetables were being sold at Rs 5 a bunch (down from Rs 15 a bunch).

Ashok Walunj, director of APMC market, predicted that lower vegetable prices are here to stay for the next few days, and are likely to dip further.

The reason, he explained, was the entry of new crops. "Crops were affected due to unexpected monsoon showers, leading to a sudden rise in prices of essential commodities. That phase is now over. New crops have flooded the market."

Thanks to this development, restaurants are all set to shed 'no onion please' boards that they were forced to put up. Mohammed Irshad Alam, Senior Manager at Baghdadi Restaurant, Colaba, said, "Since the onion rates have come down, we will bring down the board, and begin serving sliced onion to our guests from next week."

During the price rise, middle class households took the brunt, with housewives resorting to managing the menu without onions and tomatoes. Chandan Vora, a housewife from Lalbaug, is happy to hear the price fall news. "The prices had reached a point making it hard for us to sustain our daily brudget. I'm glad things are back to normal," she said.