The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has brought the country to a standstill and the lockdown, which began in March, led to a huge loss for several businesses across India. Many services and facilities were affected and faced a financial crisis.
Though the APMC market was functioning during the coronavirus lockdown as essential services, reports state that the market has witnessed a 53 per cent decline in vegetable and fruit arrivals compared to last year. Maharashtra State Agricultural Marketing Board informed about the data and stated that this has directly increased the losses of farmers.
Despite being in demand for its vegetables, the market for potatoes and onions saw a decline by 49.4 per cent, and the data reveals that the income has come down to 35 per cent, in the lockdown period from March 25 to May 29. Further, the information received also shows that the inflow of foodgrains has also declined during these months.
A few days back reports also stated that the price of vegetables increased in the APMC market as authorities had limited the entry of trucks.
Farmers could not sell their produce as markets were often closed due to the outbreak. This resulted in a fare hike among the transport providers and due to the logistical issues, the cost is assumed to have gone up. Owing to this, a large number of vegetables are spoiled and farmers are now facing huge losses.
In addition, many farmers also threw away vegetables, as markets were closed during the lockdown period which led to the decline in private trade eventually accumulating financial losses to the community.
Currently, Mumbai and nearby areas are under a lockdown until June 30, however, CM Uddhav Thackeray had announced that certain services and activities in Mumbai can resume as a part of the 'Mission Begin Again' initiative. The tally or coronavirus cases in Mumbai has crossed 50,000-mark and Maharashtra has witnessed more than 80,000 cases.
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