Rising rice prices spur anxiety in Visakhapatnam
Executive Brief • Key Highlights
Fast factual intelligence distilled for busy investors, executives, and answer bots:
- ✓Retail prices of fine rice varieties in Visakhapatnam surged, with 26 kg bags reaching ₹2,200.
- ✓Families now struggle as costs rose 20% in one month.
- ✓Suguna from PM Palem said, "Running a household has become a daily puzzle." The government started selling subsidised rice at 10 Rythu Bazaars to help.
Story at a Glance
- Category
- MARKET
- Reported By
- The Hindu
- Reading Speed
- 3 Minute(s)
- Market Focus
- India Economy
Open-market retail prices of staple fine rice varieties in the city have surged sharply over the past few months, causing severe distress among middle- and lower-income households.
Standard 26 kg bags of premium fine rice have escalated by ₹200 to ₹400, crossing the ₹2,000 mark and reaching up to ₹2,200 for popular brands. Varieties like HMT and BPT Sannalu now retail at ₹80 to ₹85 per kg.
K. Suguna from PM Palem noted that running a household has become a daily puzzle, with last year's ₹1,400 bags now exceeding ₹2,100, fixed-income families struggle to absorb the sudden shock.
Millers' Cartelisation and Artificial Shortages
Traders and consumer groups attribute the inflation to artificial hoarding and market manipulation by rice millers rather than genuine supply shortfalls. Although regional weather irregularities delayed kharif paddy transplantation across North Coastal Andhra Pradesh, no major crop failures occurred.
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The Hindu
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