An expensive harvest festival this

That prices of essential commodities shoot up during festivals is phenomenon one is familiar with, but this time the prices seem to be following it continuing with the rise over the previous month. And quite ironic that an agrarian, harvest festival is becoming so expensive to observe as prices of vegetables too have skyrocketed.

A vegetable like sweet pumpkin costs Rs 12 per kg, while drumstick costs a whopping Rs 134 per kg and beans are priced at Rs 40 per kg. Thankfully, tradition prevents people from using onion during festivals.

Buying apple is now a forbidden affair as prices have hit the roof of Rs 100 per kg and other fruits are not far behind.

Sudha, a teacher from Srinivasanagar wryly comments that she has begun to look at festivals with regret. “Earlier it was an occasion for joy. Now it just means a lot of expense. The festive feeling is completely missing.”

It is not just consumers who are complaining about the rising prices of food items. Farmers too are upset that they are getting low rates for their produce even though the prices in the market are very high. Though the annual fruit production in the state is around 5.5 million tonnes and vegetables 6.7 million tonnes, there is no stopping the prices.