GBPUAT estimates tomato prices to aid farmers

The wholesale prices of the hill tomato in the region would be ranging between Rs900 per quintal and Rs1,000 per quintal during November, 2015 to January, 2016.The forecast of tomato prices has been made by a team of scientists from the GB Pant University of Agriculture and Technology (GBPUAT), Pantnagar, after a survey was coducted of the Haldwani market, which is a major market for tomato produced in the hills of Uttrakhand.

The main objective of forecasting the prices of selected agricultural commodities before sowing and during harvesting is to help farmers take a right 

decision before they plunge into cultivation.The forecast being based on past data, the  actual market price may not turn out to be the same as predicted, said the project team scientist, Rojani Mishra, who conducted the survey   under the supervision of Anil Kumar, principal, GBPUAT, Pantnagar, after analysing the wholesale price data.

The farmers who wish to take to tomato cultivation in the coming season are advised  to take into consideration the price forecast  and other conditions of their areas before  tomato cultivation, maintained the scientist.Mention worthy, India ranks second in the world in tomato production contributing around 11.6 

percent of the world’s tomato production.

The major tomato growing states in India are Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Bihar, Gujarat, Chhattisgarh and Tamil Nadu which account for about 90 percent of India’s tomato production. Tomato is a major vegetable widely produced throughout Uttarakhand where it is grown both in the hills as well as in the plains.

Nainital, Dehradun, Uham Singh  Nagar and Haridwar are the four major districts producing tomato and the produce from these districts constitutes about 65 percent of the total tomato production in the state, said the scientists of the GBPUAT, Pantnagar.