Lemon prices rise as scorching sun pushes demand up in Erode
With the citrus fruit in short supply amidst the ongoing heatwave and increasing demand, prices have skyrocketed, said a retailer
With temperatures continuing to soar, an increase in demand coupled with a decline in availability has pushed the price of lemon to anywhere between ₹25 and ₹30 in markets here on Saturday.
Mercury levels continues to be on the rise in the district, where temperatures jumped from 35 degrees Celsius in February to 43 degrees Celsius in April. The ongoing heatwave has driven a demand for summer refreshments like sugarcane, watermelon and muskmelon, as well as lemon. “The price of lemon was ₹5 to ₹7 in February and March. But, now it has risen to ₹15 a piece,” said a retailer at Kollampalayam. The trader said the arrival of the citrus fruit had dropped signicantly and with an increase in demand, the price had skyrocketed.
With the rise in prices, consumers have started to feel the pinch as they now have to spend more on lemons. “Since children are now mostly at home, we consume lemon juice regularly to keep ourselves hydrated. Despite the increase in prices, it is healthier than other fruits which contain more sugar,” said V. Amutha of Solar. She added that the family
Former Bhavanisagar MLA P.L. Sundaram has urged the Erode district administration to permit farmers to take soil sediments (vandalman) to use as fertilisers, from the waterspread area of the Bhavanisagar dam, as the water level in the dam is very low.
In an email sent to the District Collector, he said the water level in the dam is less than 46 feet against the full reservoir level of 105 feet, while the storage was 3.47 tmc ft against the capacity of 32.80 tmc ft. Usually, when the storage level is low, farmers are allowed to take soil sediments that are rich in nutrients to serve as fertilisers for their crops. The process also helps to deepen the dam and thereby,