MARGAO: Vegetable traders from Salcete have warned that the unseasonal rain has already caused an increase in prices and that if there are more such occurrences of unseasonal rain, the prices could go up much further.
Responding to queries if there was a jump in prices in the last couple of days, traders from Margao and other parts of the taluka confirmed that there has been a gradual increase but predicted that if it continues to rain the way it has in the last couple of days, the prices will shoot up drastically.
They explained that there was already an issue in transportation of supplies to the markets due to the hike in fuel prices and that the recent spell of thunderstorms not just in Goa but other States had impacted production of vegetables. They gave the example of rise in lime prices across the country and said the rains had depleted availability of the same and they are dependent on places like Hubli for supply as opposed to getting the supply from multiple places in Karnataka and other States as well.
Furthermore, the traders said this is a wedding season and thus there is a huge demand for vegetables and that for such wedding receptions, their clients cannot avoid certain types of vegetables and are buying the same in bulk. They added that this has caused a demand and supply issue where the demand is greater than what can be supplied.
The traders said if there is a week of no rain then in eight days the prices could get back to normal. The traders explained that they supply vegetables wholesale to various markets and vendors in Salcete.
