November 9: The prices of food items have skyrocketed after the end of Dashain. The sudden price hike has occurred at a time when the country is preparing to celebrate the festival of Tihar. It has been reported that the prices of food items have increased by up to 25 percent.

According to the Retail Business Association of Nepal, the prices of lentil, edible oil, sugar and pulses have increased recently.

The retail price of beans has increased from Rs 120 to Rs 150 per kg after Dashain, which is a 25 percent hike. Likewise, the price of grams has increased by 14 percent from Rs 110 to Rs 125 per kg.

Likewise, the price of green peas has increased by Rs 20 per kg from Rs 115 to Rs 135. Sugar, which used to cost Rs 80 per kg before Dashain, now costs Rs 90 per kg.

The price of sunflower oil has increased by 9 percent from Rs 170 per litre to Rs 185 per litre. Likewise, mustard oil price has shot up by 13 percent from Rs 230 per litre to Rs 260 per litre while the price of soybean oil has increased by 14 percent from Rs 150 per litre to Rs 170 per litre.

Local businessmen say that the price of food items generally go up during festivals like Dashain, Tihar and Chhath because there  is high demand  during the festive season. However, they admit that there hasn’t been any significant rise in demand at the moment and the supply chain also remains smooth. In this context, the price hike in the country is a result of the impact of international market, says Subodh Kumar Gupta, chairman of Association of Nepalese Pulses, Rice and Oil Industry.

According to him, Nepal imports lentil, pulses and edible oil from countries like Australia, Canada, Malaysia and India. He argues that the prices of food items in those countries itself have increased, resulting in a price hike in Nepal.

However, retailers have been accusing the wholesalers of fixing the prices arbitrarily.