City markets are reporting a shortage of green leafy vegetables, with most varieties except for mint and coriander doing a vanishing act.
Officials at Rythu Bazaars said that crops sown in vast areas were damaged in heavy rains that pounded most of Krishna and Guntur districts in the last two months and the subsequent floods in the Krishna. Amaranthus, also known as Thotakoora , is nowhere to be found, sending shoppers into a tizzy.
Crops sown in Yanamalakuduru in Krishna district and Kunchanapalli in Guntur district were damaged in heavy rains and subsequent floodwaters released from Prakasam Barrage. Due to waterlogging, harvesting of some vegetables was delayed. This impacted the arrivals of the green vegetables at Rythu Bazaars in Patamata and Swaraj Maidan (PWD grounds) in the city.
Rythu Bazaars at Kaikaluru and other places were also impacted. The arrival of leafy vegetables at Patamata Rythu Bazaar, which stands at around 50 to 60 quintals per day, has now come down 30 quintals per day. Similarly, the PWD Rythu Bazaar which gets about 100 quintals of leafy vegetables per day is seeing a 20% drop in arrivals, sources said.
While the Amaranthus is hardly to be seen, spinach and other leafy vegetables are available only at a few places. The prices of coriander (kottimeera) and mint (pudina) have shot up. Coriander is now selling for ₹20 a bunch at Rythu Bazaars.
‘Tight supplies’
The rains and floods did not have any impact on coriander and mint, as these are procured from Kadapa, Mydukuru and other places in the Rayalaseema region. “The crops were not damaged due to scanty rain. The farmers who are cultivating vegetables, more particularly leafy greens, in Krishna and Guntur have faced the brunt. Availability of the vegetables and prices are expected to be under pressure for the next few days due to tight supplies,” said officials.
The situation is likely to remain the same for a few more days as farmers at Kunchanapalli and other villages in Guntur district have just begun sowing operations.
“But the scene is not very distressing as leafy vegetables are likely to flood the market in a fortnight. The situation will improve shortly. We are expecting that the arrivals from Yanalakuduru and Kunchanapalli will improve,” said Patamata Rythu Bazar EO Koteswara Rao.
