Truckers' strike hits Anakapalli jaggery prices

The truck operators' strike in the last few days has brought down the prices by about Rs 15 on 10 kg of jaggery at Anakapalli, the second biggest jaggery market in the country. If the strike continues, the Anakapalli Jaggery Merchants Association is considering a halt on jaggery purchases until the strike is called off.

"Actually, this is the fag end of the 2003-04 jaggery season in Anakapalli. Even though the farmers are bringing in around 2,000-5,000 jaggery lumps of 15 kg each every day, the traders are hesitating to buy stocks from them as these cannot be transported to other states or even the local markets. The low quality jaggery, which is normally used in illicit liquor making, has seen a slight dip in prices," I V R Nageswara Rao, president of Anakapalli Jaggery Merchants Association, told Business Standard.

If the transporters' strike continues, the association may give a call for the halt in jaggery purchases till the strike is called off, he added.

Traders purchased 10 kg of black jaggery at Rs 175 before the strike. But today they are purchasing at Rs 158-160 per 10 kg jaggery.

"In addition to this price drop, a majority of traders have decided not to purchase the stocks from farmers till the strike ends. Normally, the traders need 10-12 trucks every day to move their stocks out. At present, all the traders put together have stocks worth Rs 2.5 crore which is around 150 lorry loads, of 10 tonnes of jaggery each, in cold storage plants. Without moving out the existing stocks on a daily basis, it is difficult for the traders to procure new stocks. Therefore, the purchase prices are sliding in the market," Rao said.

During the current season, jaggery producers in and around Anakapalli region got very attractive prices when compared to the last season.

"During the last season, the farmers got about Rs 80 per 10 kg of black jaggery. But in the current season, the traders paid on an average Rs 120 per 10 kg of black jaggery. These high prices at Anakapalli have been attracting the farmers," he said.