Delhi: The rising temperature in the national capital is not only causing sunburns and dehydration, but it is also resulting in inflation of the prices of everyday commodities. After fuel and lemon prices, the price of tomatoes has also hiked by a whopping 400%, owing to the hot weather. As per reports, the scorching heat has badly impacted the crop of tomatoes in Rajasthan and Gujarat. These two states are the leading suppliers of tomatoes to Delhi.
In Azadpur, Ghazipur, and Okhla mandi, tomatoes were selling between Rs 4 and 7 per kg in 2020 and 2021. However, earlier this month, the prices hiked to rupees 42-45 per kg. The prices currently sail around rupees 28 to 32 per kg.
According to the vegetable retailers and wholesalers, the prices of tomatoes this year will increase by 400% in comparison to last year. This rise will trouble the lower and the middle class. While new crops from western and central Uttar Pradesh and other parts of Haryana have started to reach Delhi, dealers confirm that the prices of tomatoes will go down again.
CitySpidey talked to some residents of Delhi to know more about how this hike is creating problems for them.
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Madhuri Bhardwaj, a resident of Dwarka Sector-8 says, "Things are getting costly and out of our budget, first fuel prices, lemon, a gas cylinder, and now tomatoes. The middle-class people are already facing many budget-related problems and now this tomatoes price hike is just adding to it. Tomatoes are used in almost every regular meal we make now. I'll need to think twice before purchasing them. We haven't been able to have lemonade because of the hike in lemons' price."
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Shashi Kant, a resident of Dwarka Sector-23, says "Now I'm afraid to watch the news because whenever I switch to a news channel or scroll feeds, the news of a new hike in prices flashes on my screen. I stopped using my personal vehicle when the prices of fuel hiked and now I think we'll need to cook food without tomatoes. I can say that this government is not for the common man and the continuous hike in prices of veggies and other household items are only creating more survival issues for the middle class."
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Suman Bhushan, a resident of Nawada, says "Tomatoes price hike will only impact our household budgeting adversely. My daughter loves tomatoes and wants tomato chutney almost daily with her meal. I think our government needs to re-think this decision and lower the price of tomatoes and gas cylinders."
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Kirti Tiwari, a resident of Dwarka sector-5, says "I live alone in Delhi and I'm finding it difficult to survive here. I need to pay my house rent, travel allowance, food, electricity, and water bills. And how will we be able to cook without tomatoes? The food becomes tasteless without it. In a city like Delhi where everything is already very expensive, something as basic as tomatoes should be affordable."
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