Lucknow: Rising prices of vegetables, fruits, rice, pulses, cooking oil, and spices are putting pressure on household budgets in the city ahead of the festive season. Families say they are cutting quantities, avoiding some items, and adjusting their monthly grocery spending as food prices have risen sharply since July. The biggest impact is being felt in vegetables.Onion, which was selling at Rs 25-40, is now about Rs 50-70. Garlic, which was selling for Rs 80-100 per kg about 20 days ago, is now priced at Rs 200-250. Ginger has gone up from Rs 60 to Rs 160-200 per kg, while onion has risen from around Rs 30 to Rs 50-60. Green chilli is selling at Rs 100 per kg and coriander at Rs 120-160.“Earlier, I would buy a kilogram of garlic and ginger together. Now I ask the vendor for 100-200 grams because buying more is too expensive,” said Neha Srivastava, a homemaker from Aliganj.“With vegetables, milk, and other daily items becoming costlier, the monthly kitchen budget is getting difficult to manage,” she said.Traders attributed the vegetable price rise to heavy rain in producing areas, crop damage, and lower arrivals.Abrar, a vegetable trader in Narhi, said customers were buying smaller quantities and that his sales had fallen by 30% to 60% for particular items including garlic, ginger, onion and other green veggies.Fruit prices have also increased by 15% to 20%. Apples have risen from Rs 150-160 to about Rs 200 per kg, pomegranates from Rs 130 to Rs 175-180, and bananas from Rs 40-50 to Rs 70-75 per dozen.“Children ask for fruits regularly, but we are now buying them less often. Even bananas, which were considered affordable, have become expensive,” said Rakesh Verma, a resident of Indira Nagar.Nilesh Sonkar of the fruit wing of Uttar Pradesh Adarsh Vyapar Mandal said higher fuel and freight costs were being passed on to consumers.“The increased transportation cost of apples from Kashmir, pomegranates from Nashik, and bananas from Maharashtra is being passed on to consumers,” he said.Staples have also become costlier. Steam and Mansuri rice have risen from Rs 35-36 to around Rs 50 per kg, while Basmati has increased from Rs 80 to Rs 100. Urad dal has risen from Rs 110 to Rs 130, arhar from Rs 102 to Rs 118, and chana dal from Rs 70 to Rs 84 per kg.“Rice and pulses are items we cannot stop buying. When prices rise across all these categories, there is very little left to cut from the grocery budget,” said Mohammad Arif, a resident of Faizullaganj.Wheat prices have increased from Rs 2,600 to Rs 3,000 per quintal, pushing flour prices to Rs 34-36 per kg. Mustard oil has risen to Rs 185 per litre for packed brands and around Rs 200 for loose oil.Spices and dry fruits have added to the burden. Coriander seeds have risen to Rs 280 per kg from Rs 140 in June, while ground chilli has reached Rs 400 from Rs 220. Almonds are selling at Rs 1,050 per kg and pistachios at Rs 1,600.Prashant Garg, president of the Lucknow Kirana Committee, said supply disruptions and lower crop output were keeping prices firm.
