Sugarcane yield is reported to be low this year due to heavy monsoon rains leading to high sale prices for sugarcane stacks ahead of Pongal.
Coimbatore: With only two days to go for the Tamil festival Pongal, the sale of sugarcane has been brisk in the markets of Coimbatore district.
Sugarcane is being sold at Coimbatore Thiyagi Kumaran Market, Ukkadam, and MGR Market. These stacks are from Madurai Melur, Manapparai in Trichy district, Thiruvalarcholai, Mettur in Salem district, and tons of such sugarcane stacks have been brought and piled up.
A bundle of 15 canes sells for Rs.450 to Rs.500. The retail cost for a pair of sugarcane is Rs. 100.
Sugarcane traders are worried that business will not go as planned as Covid restrictions have been imposed by the Tamil Nadu Government during Pongal festival to curb the spread of the pandemic. Palani (45) who has set up a sugarcane shop at Thiyagi Kumaran Market says, "We have a sugarcane plantation in Melur, Madurai.
For the Pongal festival, every year, we used to set up a sugarcane shop in the Coimbatore market. The only fear now is whether the business will prosper due to Coronavirus. On this day last year, we brought sugarcane for sale in 10 trucks. This year, we have brought only 19 tons of sugarcane in a truck. Sugarcane yield was low this year due to monsoon and heavy rains. Maintenance cost was also high and hence we are selling one stack for 500 rupees."
Locals celebrating Pongal every year lament that the price of sugarcanes this year is too high. Traders state that there is a shortage of sugarcane but the purchase of sugarcane as Pongal gifts on behalf of the Government of Tamil Nadu is welcomed by all. At present, they have set up sugarcane shops in the hope that companies and the general public will buy more sugarcane this year for Pongal. They opined that it was not possible for them to predict if business would be brisk this Pongal.
Sugarcane is being sold at Coimbatore Thiyagi Kumaran Market, Ukkadam, and MGR Market. These stacks are from Madurai Melur, Manapparai in Trichy district, Thiruvalarcholai, Mettur in Salem district, and tons of such sugarcane stacks have been brought and piled up.
A bundle of 15 canes sells for Rs.450 to Rs.500. The retail cost for a pair of sugarcane is Rs. 100.
Sugarcane traders are worried that business will not go as planned as Covid restrictions have been imposed by the Tamil Nadu Government during Pongal festival to curb the spread of the pandemic. Palani (45) who has set up a sugarcane shop at Thiyagi Kumaran Market says, "We have a sugarcane plantation in Melur, Madurai.
For the Pongal festival, every year, we used to set up a sugarcane shop in the Coimbatore market. The only fear now is whether the business will prosper due to Coronavirus. On this day last year, we brought sugarcane for sale in 10 trucks. This year, we have brought only 19 tons of sugarcane in a truck. Sugarcane yield was low this year due to monsoon and heavy rains. Maintenance cost was also high and hence we are selling one stack for 500 rupees."
Locals celebrating Pongal every year lament that the price of sugarcanes this year is too high. Traders state that there is a shortage of sugarcane but the purchase of sugarcane as Pongal gifts on behalf of the Government of Tamil Nadu is welcomed by all. At present, they have set up sugarcane shops in the hope that companies and the general public will buy more sugarcane this year for Pongal. They opined that it was not possible for them to predict if business would be brisk this Pongal.