Angry over Pulwama attack in which 44 Central Reserve Poiice Force (CRPF) personnel were martyred on February 14, traders of Azadpur mandi in Delhi and farmers of Jhabua and Mandasaur in Madhya Pradesh have stopped supply of tomatoes and other vegetables to Pakistan.
This has soared tomato prices in Lahore and other cities. As per Samma Tv of Pakistan, tomato is being sold at Rs 180-250 a kg in Lahore and Peshawar. Currently, tomatoes in Delhi and other metros in India are selling at Rs 10-20 per kg depending on the quality and locality of the area.
According to Azadpur mandi’s Tomato Traders Association president Ashok Kaushik, Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC) Azadpur sends 35-70 trucks of tomatoes to Pakistan daily via Srinagar and there from Uri to Muzaffrabad in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK). Similarly 60-70 trucks of tomatoes come from different parts of the country including Madhya Pradesh to Pakistan. It is estimated that 2,500-3,000 tones tomato was being exported to Pakistan daily.
The APMC mandis and farmers used to supply tomato to the traders of Srinagar who export to Pakistan via Muzaffrabad. Reports suggest that tomato exported from India fetch around three times profit in Pakistan. India and Pakistan trade from two routes - the Mumbai-Karachi sea route and the Wagah land route. There are two other points - Chakan Da Bagh in Poonch and Uri -Muzaffrabad.
Kaushik said that Indian tomatoes are cheaper than those coming from other counties in Pakistan. Traders send tomatoes at Rs 20-30 a kg which was being sold at Rs 70-90 a kg in Pakistan. Most of the Indian tomato goes to mandis in Lahore, Peshawar, Quetta, Multan and Punjab region.
As per reports, Pakistan is facing huge shortage of tomato and other vegetables. Green Chilli are selling at Rs 160 a kg ; Red Chilli at Rs 300 a kg; Lady Finger at Rs 110 a kg ; Capsicum at Rs 110 a kg and Garlic at Rs 150 a kg in the wholesale market in Lahore and Peshawar.
Besides, Azadpur mandi, farmers in other parts of the country have stopped tomato export to Pakistan. They took this decision in order to mark their protest against the dastardly attack. “As many as 5000 farmers who have been engaged in tomato cultivation in Jhabua and Mandasaur district of Madhya Pradesh have refused to supply to Pakistan,” said Binod Pandey of All India Kisan Mahasangh. Tomatoes exported from Madhya Pradesh fetch Rs 1,200-1,500 per 25 kg of carat whereas the same quality sells Rs 500-600 per carat in the country.
Pandey said that prices of green chillli, garlic, lady finger, brinjal, potato also increased in several cities of Pakistan as Indian farmers stopped supply of vegetables. Potato is being sold at Rs 50-70 a kg while brinjal is at Rs 110 a kg. Onion is also being sold at Rs 90 a kg.
India has been traditionally supplying meat, chemicals, artefacts, medicines and agriculture products to Pakistan. Goods worth Rs 3,482.94 crore in 2018 (USD 488.5 million) were traded between business establishments of Jammu and Kashmir and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) via two LoC points of Chakan-Da-Bagh and Uri-Muzaffarabad during last three years.
The value of items traded by the Indian businessmen in the State during the three-year period amounted to Rs 1,676.77 crore while that by the PoK businessmen stood at Rs 1,756.17 crore for the same period . Items worth Rs 2,367.82 crore were traded via Uri and Rs 1,065.12 crore worth trade was conducted via Chakan-Da-Bagh crossing point in Poonch district.
Taking strong economic action against Pakistan following the Pulwama terror attack, India raised the customs duty to 200 per cent on all goods imported from the neighbouring country, including fresh fruits, cement, petroleum products and mineral ore.
