{"id":43882,"date":"2024-12-06T11:14:21","date_gmt":"2024-12-06T05:44:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/?p=43882"},"modified":"2025-05-06T06:31:24","modified_gmt":"2025-05-06T01:01:24","slug":"rising-potato-prices-in-odisha","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/rising-potato-prices-in-odisha\/","title":{"rendered":"Rising Potato Prices in Odisha, Reasons, Trends, and Impact"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2><strong>What\u2019s in today\u2019s article?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Why in News?<\/li>\n<li>Agro-climatic condition required for Potato cultivation<\/li>\n<li>Potato production in India<\/li>\n<li>Potato\u2019s price rise<\/li>\n<li>Reasons for the Rise in Potato Prices<\/li>\n<li>Odisha\u2019s Dependency on Potato Imports<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>Why in News?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Odisha government has blamed the West Bengal government for creating an artificial scarcity of potatoes.<\/p>\n<p>Odisha has faced high potato prices for months, worsened by West Bengal&#8217;s recent restriction on shipments due to rising prices in its own markets.<\/p>\n<p>As a major supplier, West Bengal&#8217;s actions have significantly impacted Odisha, which depends heavily on these imports.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Agro-climatic condition required for Potato cultivation<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Climate<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li>Potatoes grow best in temperate climates with moderately cool temperatures during the growing season. The ideal conditions for growing potatoes are:\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><strong>Temperature<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li>The ideal temperature range for growing potatoes is 18\u201329\u00b0C during the day and 13\u201318\u00b0C at night.\u00a0<\/li>\n<li>The optimum temperature for vegetative growth is 24\u00b0C, while the ideal temperature for tuber development is 20\u00b0C.\u00a0<\/li>\n<li>Temperatures above 30\u00b0C can stop bulb formation.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><strong>Sunlight<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li>Potatoes need at least six hours of sunlight per day, but they can also grow in dappled shade.\u00a0<\/li>\n<li>However, growing in shade can result in smaller tubers and lower yields.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><strong>Soil<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li>The potato can be grown almost on any type of soil except saline and alkaline soils.<\/li>\n<li>Soils, which are naturally loose, offer least resistance to the enlargement of the tubers is preferred.<\/li>\n<li>Loamy and sandy loam soils, rich in organic matter with good drainage and aeration are most suitable for cultivation of potato crop.<\/li>\n<li>The soil with pH range of 5.2-6.4 is considered to be ideal.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>Potato production in India<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>India\u2019s Position in Global Potato Production<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li>India is the second-largest producer of potatoes globally, after China.<\/li>\n<li>Between 1991-92 and 2020-21:\n<ul>\n<li>Potato <strong>cultivationarea doubled<\/strong> from 11 to 22 lakh hectares.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Production tripled<\/strong> from 181.95 to 561.72 lakh metric tonnes.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Productivity rose by over 50<\/strong>%, from 16 to 25 metric tonnes per hectare.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><strong>Potato Cultivation in India<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Primary Season<\/strong>: Rabi (winter-spring).<\/li>\n<li><strong>Major Producing States<\/strong>: Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Bihar, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Assam, Jharkhand, and Chhattisgarh.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Kharif Cultivation<\/strong>: Limited to Uttarakhand, Karnataka, Himachal Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and Maharashtra.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><strong>Top Producers in 2021-22<\/strong>:\n<ul>\n<li>Uttar Pradesh: 161 lakh metric tonnes.<\/li>\n<li>West Bengal: 124 lakh metric tonnes.<\/li>\n<li>These two states accounted for almost 50% of India\u2019s total production of 533 lakh metric tonnes.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>Potato\u2019s price rise<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Seasonal Price Trends of Potatoes<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li>Potato prices typically decline during the arrival of the rabi crop in winter and spring.<\/li>\n<li>Prices usually rise during late summer and monsoon seasons.<\/li>\n<li>In 2024, prices have remained consistently high across the country, including Odisha.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><strong>Rise in Potato Prices: Nationwide Trend<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Retail Prices (December 3, 2024):<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li>Average: Rs 38.08 per kg.<\/li>\n<li>4.90% higher than a month ago.<\/li>\n<li>55.49% higher than a year ago.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><strong>Wholesale Prices (December 3, 2024):<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li>Average: Rs 3,120.99 per quintal.<\/li>\n<li>5.24% higher than a month ago.<\/li>\n<li>69.63% higher than a year ago.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><strong>Impact on Inflation and Economy<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Potato contributes<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li>0.98404 to Consumer Price Index (CPI).<\/li>\n<li>0.27737 to Wholesale Price Index (WPI).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Price volatility impacts both consumers and the HoReCa (Hotel, Restaurant, and Catering) sector.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>Reasons for the Rise in Potato Prices<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Production Decline<\/strong>: Potato production for the 2023-24 crop year (July-June) dropped by 5.6%, falling from 601 lakh metric tonnes in 2022-23 to 567 lakh metric tonnes.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Reduced Cultivation Area<\/strong>: The area under potato cultivation decreased slightly from 23.32 lakh hectares in 2022-23 to 23.22 lakh hectares in 2023-24, likely due to low prices in the previous year, which discouraged farmers.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Impact on Top Producers<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Uttar Pradesh<\/strong> &#8211; Production fell from 201.3 lakh tonnes to 191.7 lakh tonnes.<\/li>\n<li><strong>West Bengal<\/strong> &#8211; Experienced a sharper decline, with production dropping by 15 lakh tonnes from 145 lakh tonnes in 2022-23 to 130 lakh tonnes in 2023-24.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>Odisha\u2019s Dependency on Potato Imports<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Odisha has low potato production due to unsuitable agro-climatic conditions (temperatures required: 15\u00b0C-25\u00b0C).<\/li>\n<li>The state heavily depends on imports, primarily from West Bengal, to meet its potato demand.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Trade Flow<\/strong>: West Bengal typically sends 150-200 truckloads of potatoes to Odisha and Chhattisgarh.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<h3><strong>Q.1. Why have potato prices risen in Odisha?<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Potato prices in Odisha have surged due to reduced production in India, with key producers like West Bengal limiting shipments, creating an artificial scarcity.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>Q.2. What is Odisha&#8217;s dependency on potato imports?<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Odisha relies on West Bengal for 150-200 truckloads of potatoes daily, as local conditions aren&#8217;t ideal for potato cultivation, leading to dependency for meeting demand.<\/p>\n<p><strong>News:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/indianexpress.com\/article\/explained\/explained-economics\/hot-potato-in-odisha-why-tubers-high-price-has-hit-the-state-hard-9709110\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Hot potato in Odisha: why tuber\u2019s high price has hit the state hard<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/nhb.gov.in\/pdf\/vegetable\/potato\/pot012.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">National Horticulture Board<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Odisha faces high potato prices due to a production decline and West Bengal&#8217;s shipment restrictions. This article explores potato cultivation, production in India, and reasons behind price hikes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":43883,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-43882","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-upsc-mains-current-affairs","8":"no-featured-image-padding"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43882","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43882"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43882\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/43883"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43882"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43882"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43882"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}