Monday, Apr 14, 2003
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New Delhi
By Our Staff Reporter
Though the Delhi Government has asserted that there was no reason to panic, essential commodities like vegetables, milk and fruits might become dear if the transporters go on strike. "It will begin with shortage of these items and prices will immediately shoot up,'' said a senior Government official. Delhi requires at least 150 trucks of potatoes and onions daily besides 50 trucks of tomatoes. While requirements of potato and onion can be met for a few days with the existing stocks in the city's cold storages, extra efforts would be needed to ensure regular supply of tomatoes. Same is the case with other seasonal vegetables and fruits. According to Delhi Agricultural Marketing Board, on an average the Capital requires 5,000 metric tonnes of vegetables per day which is brought to the city by 500 trucks. Though the Delhi Chief Secretary, Shailja Chandra, asserted that farmers from the neighbouring States would bring their vegetables on tractors and other small transport vehicles as these are perishable items and would otherwise result in a huge financial loss to them, but these alternative means of transport cannot fill the vacuum created by the absence of 500 trucks for vegetables and 300 trucks for fruits. "It is impossible to create an alternative transportation system for 800 trucks per day,'' a top official argued. While vegetables come mostly to the Capital from a distance of two to 200 km, a sizable quantity of fruits come on train from as far as Tamil Nadu (banana), Maharashtra (oranges and grapes) and Andhra Pradesh (mango). "The apple season is over and is now mostly supplied from the cold storage in Delhi,'' the official asserted. However, it would be difficult to supply fruits by train as these commodities are brought to railways stations only on trucks, which would be on strike. Similarly milk would be another item which is expected to be hit first, even though Mother Dairy -- which caters to one-fifth of the Capital's requirement -- has assured the Delhi Government that there would be no shortfall in their supply. But what would happen to the milk from private dairies and small milk operators who supply milk to the Capital through trucks. "More than 50 per cent of the milk requirement is met by them,'' the official conceded. Under such circumstances, senior officials conceded that the immediate fallout of this indefinite strike would be increase in the prices of these essential items. As far as wheat, rice, sugar and pulses are concerned, the officials said the godowns of Indian Food Corporation were overflowing and there was no shortage as such. But even for transporting these items within the city, the Government would be requiring trucks. ``That is why the Delhi Transport Corporation has been alerted to be prepared to use their fleet of buses for transportation of these items,'' officials said. Even the CNG-run DTC buses can be used for transportation within the city only and cannot be send outside for bringing in vegetables and fruits as the CNG would prove to be a handicap in that case, officials conceded.
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