Buy tomatoes at ₹40 per kg from today. Details here
Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd (NAFED), will start selling tomatoes at a reduced rate of ₹40 per kilogram from today (20 August). Since last month, cooperatives NCCF and NAFED have been selling tomatoes at a discounted rate on behalf of the government to contain the price rise. To date, over 15 lakh kilogram of tomatoes have been procured by the two agencies and are being sold to retail consumers in major consumption centres in the country, including Delhi-NCR, Rajasthan (Jaipur, Kota), Uttar Pradesh (Lucknow, Kanpur, Varanasi, Prayagraj) and Bihar (Patna, Muzaffarpur, Arrah, Buxar).
NCCF and NAFED are procuring tomatoes from mandis in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Maharashtra. Earlier on 13 August, the NCCF sold 71,500 kg of tomatoes at a subsidised rate in Delhi in the two-day mega sale. Out of 71,500 kg of tomatoes, 36,500 kg were sold on August 12, while 35,000 kg on August 13, it added.
Tomatoes were sold at a subsidised rate of ₹70 per kg. Earlier this month Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the government is taking steps to control inflation and as part of the measures tomatoes are being imported from Nepal to meet the demand and check prices. The first lot of imports reached Varanasi, Kanpur, and Delhi among others Tomato prices have surged more than 1,400% at the wholesale market to a record ₹200 per kg in the past three months, with farmers citing reasons including poor rainfall, higher temperatures, and a virus outbreak that has hit the crop.
The high prices of tomatoes have not just pinched the common man but also big food chain outlets too. Burger King's Indian outlets removed tomatoes from its menu. "Even tomatoes need a vacation!" read a notice at an outlet in Delhi
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