Why your household budget will go through the roof

Farmers in Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karn­ataka, Tamil Nadu and Telan­gana anticipate a sharp dec­line in vegetable output this year, due to sustained declines in the water table after consecutive years of below-average rain.
Prices of vegetables are expected to stay high for the next four to six weeks.

Vegetable prices have risen by up to 40 per cent at wholesale markets over the past week because of less availability.

Cabbage in Mumbai’s wh­ol­esale markets has become costlier by 33 per cent to Rs 20 a kg.

Onion prices are rising and the Centre has withdrawn the earlier 10 per cent export incentive on it to dis­courage shipment out of India, it announced on Tuesday.

Prices are expected to stay high for the next four to six weeks.

“Overall acreage un­der vegetables might rise by five to 7 per cent this ye­ar but overall output might not rise proportionately,” said a senior official at the Agricu­ltural Produce Market Com­m­ittee at Vashi, Navi Mumbai.

Farmers in Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karn­ataka, Tamil Nadu and Telan­gana anticipate a sharp dec­line in vegetable output this year, due to sustained declines in the water table after consecutive years of below-average rain.

While forecasts of a normal monsoon this year have kept their hopes alive, the distribution of rain would be key in scaling up overall output and farmer incomes.

Normally, vegetables sown with irrigated water in the pre-monsoon season get harvested with the onset of monsoon.

This year,  vegetable crops were hit bec­ause of deficient rain in the past two years and in pre-monsoon showers.

“Output of vegetable crops would decline by 50-60 per cent due to lack of moisture in the field.

"Thus, overall vegetable yield is expected to decline sharply in summer-sown crops,” said Sanjay Bhu­jbal, a large stockist at Vashi.

Photograph: Shailesh Andrade/Reuters