“There is a dire shortage of drumsticks in the market as the vegetables do not come from Gujarat and Rajasthan. | Photo Credit: BHAGYA PRAKASH K.
As mercury dips in Bengaluru, prices of vegetables are too high to handle. Tomatoes and drumsticks seem to be the most expensive of all.
Tomato price has shot up to ₹80 per kg and industry experts said it would not be a surprise if it crosses the ₹100 per kg mark. A kilo of drumsticks, which was earlier sold in the range of ₹ 200, was now being sold at ₹ 350 due to the extreme scarcity of the vegetable in the market.
“Excessive rains have damaged the tomato crop in the Kolar belt, the largest producer of tomatoes in South India. While arrivals at Kolar APMC have reduced by nearly 50%, there has been extensive damage to the crop in Maharashtra, another major producer. Tomatoes from Kolar are also sent to Maharashtra from where they are supplied all over North India. This has led to inflated prices for Kolar, aAPr,” Trimurti explains.
Meanwhile, barring arrivals from Gujarat and Rajasthan, there is a severe shortage of mallets in the market. “The little that is coming is from Tamil Nadu. The price has shot up to ₹350. But it is not a staple vegetable and people are not buying it at such high prices,” said a purchase official from a reputed grocery chain in Bengaluru.
Onion prices are falling
On the other hand, onion prices fell. “The rain and moisture in the air has made the onions wet, leading to premature spoilage and sprouting,” said Ravi Shankar, an onion trader at Yeshwantpur APMC yard.
“Farmers in Challakere and Maharashtra harvested the crop and stored it expecting a good price. These onions are relatively better but they are also affected by mold due to moisture. But it seems farmers in Belagavi and Bagalkot did not harvest it at the right time. They got very wet and spoiled,” he said.
While good quality onions fetch a good price in the range of ₹25 to ₹35, they account for less than 30% of onions in the market. The rest are wet onions and were traded for as little as ₹5 to ₹10 in the wholesale market.
“Even if you are prepared to pay a good price, quality onions are hard to come by,” said Mr. Shankar.
Vegetable prices are usually relatively higher during winter in Bengaluru. But that is usually balanced by the flood of avarekai this season, but that didn’t happen this season either.
“By the first week of December, avarekai was supposed to dominate the markets, which will lead to a drop in demand for other vegetables, which will bring down their prices. As avarekai is also affected this year, the prices of other vegetables are also high,” said a purchase official of a grocery retail chain.
While the price of beans is around ₹80 to ₹110, the prices of most other vegetables are also on the higher side and are expected to come down only with the takeover of avarekai.
Published – 1 Dec 2025 21:22 IST
