A steep increase in the price of tomatoes has sent meme-makers into overdrive on Twitter, where the hashtag #tomato has been trending high since yesterday. While they are sold every winter at around Rs 20 a kilo, retail tomato prices are ruling at Rs 80 per kg in a lot of cities across the country right now. Rates have shot up to as high as Rs 120 per kg in few southern states because of widespread rains, according to government data. The worst sufferer of the shortage is Chennai, where the vegetable is selling for Rs 140 a kilo. In Kerala, tomatoes are being sold for anywhere between Rs 90 per kilo to Rs 120 per kilo, while customers in the National Capital Region have to shell out anywhere between Rs 90 to Rs 108 for a kilo of tomatoes, according to news agency PTI.
As per the data, retail tomato prices began to rise from the beginning of October and have been ruling at elevated levels in November.
Azadpur Tomato Association President Ashok Kaushik said, "The tomato supply to Delhi from south India has been affected because of the rains. If rains continue in the coming days, the prices in the national capital might rise from the current level."
Besides tomatoes, prices of other vegetables like capsicum and onions have also gone up. Large tomato-growing areas have been hit by rain and the diesel price hike is further augmenting the prices. In Andhra Pradesh -- the largest producer of tomatoes in the country (the state grows around 26.67 lakh metric tonnes) -- tomatoes are being sold at Rs 100 a kilo.
