Guwahati Vegetable Prices Soar Amid Wide Kharupetia Wholesale-Retail Price Gap

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: Despite Assam being traditionally rich in agricultural produce, particularly vegetables, neither the farmers of the state, nor the consumers are able to reap benefits.

On the contrary, absence of a proper government mechanism vis-à-vis supply chain logistics has enabled middlemen to thrive, resulting in huge variation in the wholesale prices of vegetables at the place of origin and the retail prices in urban areas, particularly in Guwahati.

Consider the following seasonal vegetable items. While the wholesale price of a gourd at Kharupetia is Rs 10-12, the same item is sold in the retail at Rs 50-60 in the state capital.

Similarly, cauliflower sells for Rs 6-7 per kg at the Kharupetia wholesale market, and Rs 80-100 in Guwahati retail market.

Likewise, there is a huge variation in the prices of other vegetable items like raddish (Rs 10 at Kharupetia, and Rs 100 in Guwahati) and brinjal (Rs 10-12 at Kharupetia, and Rs 80 in Guwahati). As amply evident, the price variation at the source and end destination is anywhere between 500% to up to 1,000%.

What makes the matter even more startling is that the distance between Kharupetia and Guwahati is about 80 km only by road. Hence, the price variation is not commensurate with the distance between the two places.

But despite the huge surge in the prices of vegetables in the state's urban areas, particularly Guwahati, due to which the consumers are being forced to buy the items at exorbitant rates, the farmers growing them don't benefit either.

In fact, the farmers are often forced to sell their produce to the middlemen due to severe infrastructure gaps. These include lack of adequate number of cold storage facilities, proper post-harvesting handling facilities, and other supply chain logistics.

Consider Kharupetia in Barpeta district, which is a leading source for vegetables that are transported far and wide, including Guwahati. A cold storage unit was inaugurated there few years back with much fanfare. But, for reasons best known to authorities concerned, the unit is lying unused to date, which speaks volumes of the government's approach to the pressing issue.

Further, there is acute shortage of food processing units in the state. Due to this, perishable items like tomatoes, which can be used for making sauce, juice, etc, are often left on the roads by farmers due to want of prices. The issue was once flagged by none other than a ruling-party legislator in the Assam Legislative Assembly.

Given the circumstances, sources claimed that it's only the middlemen who rake in the moolah.

Due to rich, diverse and unique agro-climatic conditions, Assam produces approximately 3.9 million metric tonne (MMT) of vegetables annually.

And the leading areas of vegetable production in the state are Barpeta, Kamrup and Darrang.

But absence of supply chain logistics is affecting the market prices of most items, hitting both the farmers and consumers hard.

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