Vegetable prices fall after govt steps in

MUMBAI: The government seems to have gained a psychological advantage by its symbolic intervention in food prices. A day after chief minister PrithvirajChavan announced that the state will set up 100 vegetable stalls through cooperative stores at 30% less than market rate, the cost of vegetables in neighbourhoodbazars began to fall.
TOI had reported on June 29 how retail cartels are selling vegetables four times higher than the wholesale rate.
The instant rigging became starkly visible on Friday. Overnight, outside Andheri's Apna Bazar, vendors dropped the price of lady finger, cauliflower and capsicum from Rs 80 a kg to Rs 60, and brinjal from Rs 60 a kg to Rs 45-48. Clusters of methi were available for Rs 12, down from Rs 30-40 a week ago.
Bandra's Pali Market saw a similar drop. Greengrocer Shivcharan Gupta said, "The fall has nothing to do with the government announcement. The correction has come because fresh stock has started flowing in now that a dry spell has set in."
Interestingly, the vegetable stall that already operates inside Apna Bazar was filled with bruised, rotting vegetables and fruit whose price was 30-50% higher than market rate. Veera Desai Road resident S N Naik and his wife arrived at the supermarket assuming that the low-price sale had already started. However, they were disappointed with the limited quantity and substandard vegetable quality.
Brinjal sold for Rs 100, methi Rs 35, pear Rs 150, cherries Rs 200, ginger Rs 220, parwal Rs 100 and wilted lady finger for Rs 60. Once the government scheme operates here from Monday, buyers may have a better option to buy quality items in the range of Rs 55. The question is whether the store will find it easy to revert to the old arrangement once the temporary government-sponsored scheme ends. "We are facing quality issues with our current contractor and if the new deal works out, we would like to continue it," said Apna Bazar chairman Anil Gangar.
The mechanics of the government deal remain hazy. Kishor B Rane, head of Parel's Suparibaug Cooperative, said APMC would buy back unsold vegetables and divert them to hoteliers. However, Gangar said the government had not agreed to take back leftover stock. "I am confident that we will manage to sell everything," he said.
Sources said Apna Bazar had suffered a loss of Rs 3 lakh during the previous government subsidy partnership in August 2009. However, Gangar put the figure at Rs 60,000.