Beans crop perished due to lack of water at Yannur, near Sidlaghatta in Chikkaballapur district of Karnataka.
| Photo Credit: BHAGYA PRAKASH K
It is now the turn of beans to burn a hole in the pockets of consumers. The vegetable is being sold for anything between ₹180 – ₹220 per kg in retail and online markets in Bengaluru. The supply to markets has taken a hit as heat has destroyed the beans crop in Kolar district and other vegetable growing regions around Bengaluru.
While beans get expensive every summer, this is one of the highest it has ever touched, according to traders. In wholesale markets, the selling price is around ₹120 – ₹130 per kg.
“The supply to the market has reduced by almost 70% this year. In the last 10 days, the price went from ₹80 per kg to ₹120 per kg,” said Manjunath Reddy, a vegetable trader in K. R. Market.
“We get good quality beans in the market only when the temperature is hovering around 30 degree Celsius. Otherwise, the quality also deteriorates.” He added that the price might go up by another ₹10 – ₹20 in the next one month as supply will not pick up until a good spell of rain.
Farmers reported that the yield has reduced to a mere 30-40%.
“While the yield on one acre is usually around 1,500 kg, now farmers are struggling to get even 500 kg,” said Nalini Gowda, president, Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha, Kolar district.
“The temperature is very high, and flowers are dropping from the plant. The climber develops well only when there is cooler air and cooler water. But due to heat and power problems, we are not able to provide plants with cool water, and stored water usually heats up very quickly.”
She concluded that rain is the only solution to improve the yield, and thereby lead to a reduction in price of beans.