Many vegetables have become cheaper but the price of potatoes is still quite high across Calcutta.
People across the city said the price of the Chandramukhi variety of potatoes was still around Rs 40 a kilo in most markets. Two months ago the variety sold for around Rs 35 in the city.
Retailers and wholesalers said the price of Chandramukhi was higher than normal but a newly harvested variety from Punjab was available at a cheaper rate.
Increased supply of the Punjab variety is likely to bring down the price of Chandramukhi, they said.
“The notun aloo (fresh yield) from Punjab is selling at Rs 38 a kilo. The price is likely to go down with an increase in the supply of the Punjab crop. And that may have an impact on the price of the Chandramukhi variety, too. The Chandramukhi variety is selling for Rs 40 a kilo and the Jyoti variety for Rs 35 a kilo,” said Bhola Saha, a vegetable retailer at Lake Market.
“The demand for Chandramukhi will fall if the Punjab variety sells at a much lower price. That will naturally pull down the price of Chandramukhi,” said Biswanath Dey, a wholesaler at the Postamarket.
Chandramukhi, grown mostly in Bengal, tastes better than other varieties ofpotato.
“The Chandramukhi potatoes that are being sold now are coming from cold storage. Fresh produce will arrive in the markets in early summer,” Dey said.
The prices of many other vegetables have dropped after remaining high for several weeks.
Tomatoes, which sold for Rs 100 a kilo a few weeks ago, are now priced between Rs 60 and Rs 70 a kilo.
Cauliflowers, a winter delicacy, sold at Rs 25 a piece in many markets on Sunday, down from Rs 35 a few weeks ago.
“The price of coriander leaves is varying between Rs 40 and Rs 60 a kilo. It went up to Rs 100 recently,” said a vegetable retailer at the Haltu market in Kasba.
A Sovabazar resident said the prices had risen to the extent that he had stopped buying many vegetables.
“I was avoiding many vegetables like coriander leaves. The drop in prices has brought some relief but potatoes are still expensive,” he said.
