THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: If one gets no good food to break the fast, the hadith says water will do. A believer who looks at the high prices of meat and vegetable for Iftar will surely remember it. Chicken which was priced at Rs 176 a kg before two weeks, now costs Rs 195 and the live chicken cost around Rs 125. This was similar to mutton which cost over Rs 650 in the local market.
“The prices have peaked, and this will be same until Ramzan gets over,” said Rasheed Ansib, who run a poultry business. With market intervention from the government through the Horticorp being only applicable to vegetables, almost every fruit barring locally cultivated pineapple are expensive.
Though mango season has begun, at the retails market it cost over Rs 55 per kg as the season just started. “Now, the most popular fruits during Ramzan are grapes, shamam and then mangoes. The business was very dull till two days back but from today, it picked up,” K.K. Ashraf, a member of All Kerala Fruits Merchant Association said.
While wholesale price of grape is around 35-45 a kg, the retailers sell them over Rs 70. The apple costs between Rs 120 and Rs 150 a kg, oranges between Rs 100 and Rs 120 and musambi around Rs 110. Several hotels that remain closed during morning opens to grand business after iftar involving their employees. Some hoteliers serve complimentary fruits and porridge to all customers. Due to high prices, watermelon and pineapple are among the commonly served fruits here.
