Currently, the yelakki variety is selling at ₹95–₹100 per kg while the Robusta variety is selling at ₹29–₹30 per kg in wholesale markets
| Photo Credit: File Photo
The humble banana has become one of the most expensive fruits in Bengaluru’s markets with the Yelakki variety now selling at around ₹125 – ₹160 per kg. While a huge part of the crop was damaged owing to no rain during the sowing season, most of the remaining crop got damaged in the heavy rains that followed.
According to the data provided by the Horticulture Department, bananas on 1,737.7 hectares of land were lost due to heavy rains in 2024, amounting to an estimated monetary loss of ₹41.25 crore. In Chamarajanagar, which is one of the leading producers of bananas in Karnataka, bananas were lost on 1,104.7 acres. In Vijayanagara district, 238.8 hectares of bananas were lost.
“There was no rain when it was necessary for the (banana) crop. So many farmers who had cultivated it took it out and yield dropped to 50–60%. After that, it started raining continuously and even the remaining fruits started getting red and black spots and there are no takers for such fruits. Hence, the supply is not great in the market,” explained K.G. Purushotham, president, Banana Fruits Merchants’ Association.
Currently, the yelakki variety is selling at ₹95–₹100 per kg while the Robusta variety is selling at ₹29–₹30 per kg in wholesale markets (mandis). In retail markets and online selling platforms, the price of yelakki is between ₹125–₹160 while the price of Robusta is around ₹40–₹50 per kg.
Even if customers are ready to pay these prices, most of them are not able to find good quality, ripe bananas in the market. Sachin Rai, a resident of Padmanabhanagar said, “When I was buying bananas for Krishna Janmashtami, it was so difficult to find ripe bananas. I could only find unripe yelakki bananas in many shops.”
Mr. Purushotham said that the prices of bananas might drop after Ganesh Chaturthi when the new crop begins to come in from Tamil Nadu.
Horticultural crop loss on 3,700 hectares
Due to heavy rains in 2024, horticultural crops have been lost on around 3,700 hectares (ha) of land (at a value of ₹65.17 crore), officials from the Horticulture Department said. Chamarajanagar (1,110.2 ha), Bagalakote (417.9 ha), Haveri (392.2 ha) and Kolar (371.7 ha) are the worst affected districts.
Apart from bananas, onions, mangoes, chillis and areacanuts are some of the other worst affected crops. Overall, the loss of horticultural crops has led to an increase in the prices of fruits and vegetables in the city.
“It is difficult to buy anything in the market anymore as every now and then we keep hearing about crop damage and the price of every fruit and vegetable keeps going up. Most of the hikes cross the ₹100 mark making it really difficult for the middle class to afford,” said Bhagya Lakshmi, a resident of Hebbal.
