Pune: The flavourful zest has gone out of homemade koshimbir, and the slice has slimmed down in hotel salads, and any food with a dash of lime is now a shade less citrusy.Lime prices in Pune have surged during the monsoon due to a sharp fall in arrivals, with wholesale rates at Gultekdi Market Yard at Rs 160 to Rs 200 per kg depending on quality. In retail markets, vendors are selling the fruit at Rs 10-12 per piece to consumers.Pashan resident Beena Pillai said, “Limes come in abundance this time of the year and I wanted to pickle them and store for the year. But their prices are higher than they were in peak summer.”Online platforms are selling them for as much as Rs 60 for 200g. “The vegetable vendor down the road is selling three limes for Rs 25. They are small and not even juicy. We have started buying concentrated lime juice bottles till the prices fall,” Sarita Mehta, a resident of Wanowrie, said.Wholesalers are saw fewer buyers due to the surging prices. “There is no supply in the market at present. We have abundant limes during this season, but lack of rainfall has impacted the crop. One sack of 20kg costs Rs 3,000-Rs 3,200 at present,” Santosh Pol, a wholesaler at Market Yard, said.Nitin Chaure, head of the fruits and vegetables department at Pune APMC, said, “Pune gets limes from nearby districts and from other states, if the supply is short. This time, they are scarce everywhere.”A trader in Market Yard said, “This is the first time in Aug-Sept that prices have surged so much. People are buying less and only as per necessity.” Another supplier said supply is just about half of the normal levels and nobody knows when arrivals will improve or when prices will stabilise. Going by arrival numbers, prices are unlikely to ease in the next few weeks.It’s not only consumers and pickle makers but also juice shops, restaurants, caterers and street-food vendors who are struggling to manage high costs of lime.“We can’t increase or reduce the price of food based on fluctuating prices of ingredients. Prices of onions, lime and tomatoes keep fluctuating so we have kept a small margin as buffer,” Ratan Ghule, a misal vendor in Kondhwa, said. “I have to buy limes for the nimboo pani and soda that I vend and will have to increase prices if limes don’t get cheaper,” Santosh Kale, a vendor near Pune railway station, said.
