With the wholesale prices of arhar dal in Odisha skyrocketing to a whopping 57 per cent, country’s highest spike in just a month (March-April), perplexed consumers in the State are feeling the rise of ‘price-heat’ in hot summer. What is haunting the consumers in Odisha is the retail arhal dal prices are shockingly the costliest in the whole of eastern India.
According to official data available with APMCs (Agriculture Produce Marketing Committees), the wholesale prices of arhar dal in March 2016 was Rs 8,000 per quintal. But the prices ruling at wholesale level on Monday (April 18) was Rs 12,500/quintal, which shows within a month the prices have multiplied by over 57 per cent.
The result: Retail prices of arhar prevailing in Odisha look to be the highest in eastern India.
While the retail prices in Odisha on average is around Rs 130/kg, the corresponding prices in Bihar and Jharkhand are Rs 126 and Rs 120/kg respectively. Even, in Kolkata the prices are lower than Odisha by around Rs 5/kg. Data reveals how Odisha has recorded the third highest price variation after Assam and Tamil Nadu at the retail level in the country between April 1 and 18.
However, in Odisha it is Sambalpur and Rourkela region that recorded the steepest rise in arhar dal prices comparably. Sambalpur region has the steepest hike of over Rs 17/kg in April followed by Rourkela with Rs 14/kg. On the contrary, the prices were up in the band of Rs 10-12 in the coastal region.
Though arhar prices have moved up nationally in the month of April, steepest rise in Odisha prices is due to abnormal fall in arrivals of the commodity. Sources in State mandis indicate that the arrivals in State centres have declined by as high as 12 per cent this month that pushed the wholesale prices to a country highest. Skewed supply side distortion is fuelling the prices as traders were ruling the roost, when an open internecine battle was on in the ruling BJD gripping the Food and Civil Supplies Department and resultantly the governance had taken a backseat. The result: Consumers have to shell more in Odisha for the arhar in the entire eastern belt.
Not only arhar, the potato price in Odisha is a good Rs 4-6/kg more than in Jharkhand and Bihar. With the prices of tomatoes in Sambalpur even higher than Delhi by Rs 3/kg, tomatoes and onion prices are also higher in Odisha comparably. Atta prices in Odisha per kg are higher by Rs 3-4 than its counterpart in eastern India. Even, in sugar prices, Odisha stands the costliest in the eastern India. However, the comforting factor is milk in Odisha is cheaper than Bihar and Jharkhand thanks to policy of price control by OMFED.