Red gram price shoots up, no signs of price reduction

 

Incidentally, the price of red gram was highest in Vizag compared to other cities and towns in the state. Till a few weeks ago, the price of Akola and Wardha varieties of red-gram was Rs 90 a kg and now has shot up to Rs 122 per kg (a steep hike of Rs 32 per kg) while the pries of other essential commodities such as green gram, black gram and Bengal gram remained stable. 

 

Speaking to this correspondent, assistant director marketing (rythu bazaars), Visakhapatnam, and B. Ravi Kumar said that traders in Vizag and AP have been importing the red gram from Maharashtra and Punjab and neighbouring states. The short supply from those two states was the main reason for the record increase in the price, he added. 

 

Sources said that some traders in Vizag deliberately increased the price of red-gram citing severe shortage of supply by illegal storing it. The price of red gram in other cities in AP ranged from Rs 105 to Rs 120 whereas in Vizag the price touched Rs 130 in some top departmental stores. 

 

DSO (Vizag city) of Civil Supplies Department K. Raviteja Naik attributed  unseasonal rains and crop failure in other states as the major reason for the skyrocketing prices all over the state. Joint collector and other officials are chalking out plans to supply the red gram at Rs 90 a kg through around 50 special outlets and also plan to conduct raids on the shops, which illegally stored the red-gram, he added. 

 

The supply of red gram has remained short, but the demand is the same indicating that we don’t expect any drop in price at least for the next couple of months, said Mr K.S. Kumar, proprietor of Venkata Satyasai General Stores at MVP Colony.