9 in 10 household consumers surveyed feeling the pinch of rising prices of vegetables like lemon, beans, ladyfinger, others in the last 30 days

April 13, 2022, New Delhi: On the heels of the rising cost of petrol and diesel, prices of various vegetables have increased significantly and the middle- and low-income households are pinching their pockets right now. Among vegetables, the highest surge has been on lemon. For instance, a single lemon is now costing between INR 18-25 and the per kg price in several states is between INR 300-400 now. Similarly, consumers are reporting rising prices of vegetables like ladyfinger or bhindi, beans and several others. Both lady finger and beans are selling over INR 100 per kg in many parts of the country. While some of the price increases are due to the weather and supply situation, the rising prices of petrol and diesel have a big role to play. The prices of petrol and diesel have been increased by nearly INR 10 per litre since late March. Experts say that high transportation costs have resulted in a price increase of about INR 10-15 per kg.

An unregulated hike in the price of vegetables is not new to the country. Experts, citing government data, say that the trade of these perishable vegetables in the retail market goes up at different rates across states due to several factors like disrupted supplies and unchecked trade regulation. Not only the high prices of petrol and diesel have affected the price of various essential commodities, vegetable prices have gone up additionally due to weather conditions. For instance, many have cited that the price of lemons has been soaring due to the after-effects of a cyclone in Gujarat.

Given a large number of posts and comments from consumers on rising prices of certain vegetables, LocalCircles has conducted a survey to understand how much more are households paying for vegetables this month as compared to March. The survey received 11,800 responses from citizens across 311 districts of India. 64% respondents were men while 36% respondents were women. 48% respondents were from tier 1, 29% from tier 2 and 23% respondents were from tier 3, 4 and rural districts.

87% household consumers surveyed say they are experiencing the rising prices of vegetables like lemon, beans, ladyfinger and others from March to April

The question in the survey asked consumers, “Some members are reporting rising prices of various vegetables like lemon, beans, ladyfinger, etc. Assuming you are buying similar quantities, how much more as a household are you paying for vegetables in April as compared to March?” In response, 14% said “0-10% more”, 36% said “10-25% more”, 25% said “25-50% more”, 5% said “50-100% more”, and 7% said “more than 100%”. Only 2% said they are “Actually paying less overall” and 4% are “Paying the same as March”. 7% couldn’t say. On an aggregate basis, 87% of household consumers surveyed say they are experiencing the rising prices of vegetables like lemon, beans, ladyfinger and others from March to April. This question received 11,800 responses.

Amongst the 87% household consumers experiencing rising prices of vegetable like lemon, beans, ladyfinger, 37% are reporting an increase of over 25%

Data analysis of household consumers shows that amongst the 87% of household consumers are experiencing rising prices of vegetables, 37% are reporting an increase of over 25%.

In summary, the findings of the survey indicate that prices of some vegetables have skyrocketed in the last 1 month. This is evident with 87% of household consumers surveyed saying they are experiencing the rising prices of vegetables like lemon, beans, ladyfinger and others from March to April. Of whom, 37% of household consumers are reporting an increase of over 25%. The need of the hour for Central and State Governments to consider is if they can improve supplies of such vegetables that are experiencing unusual price increases and keep any hoarding and black marketing in check.

This survey is part of a continuous effort by LocalCircles to bring authorities’ attention to issues of common citizens so actions can be taken to improve the on-ground situation.