Gujjar stir hits jeera arrivals in Gujarat

Jeera and isabgol start arriving in Gujarat mandis in March and April respectively. Both these commodities mainly arrive at the Unjha market yard (Gujarat), which is Asia's largest market yard and a hub of jeera trading. Rajasthan provides around 75-80 per cent of the total jeera arrivals in Gujarat, said traders in Unjha.

Arrivals have been hit as transportation services in some parts of Rajasthan have come to a complete halt, said Narayanbhai Patel, chairman, Gujarat Rajya Niyantrit Bajar Sangh, an association floated to monitor and control total 225 agriculture marketing yards in Gujarat.

Daily jeera arrivals have declined by 2,000-2,500 bags to 8,000-9,000 bags (weighing 65 kg) a day with total arrival at Unjha around 12,000-13,000 bags. Similarly, isabgol arrivals have dipped by 500-1,000 bags to 5,000-6,000 bags, with total arrival, including that from MP, around 9,000-10,000 bags a day.

This has put pressure on the prices of these commodities. The prices have increased by Rs 25-50 per 20 kg of these commodities, said Arvind Patel, a jeera trader from Unjha.

The average price of jeera in Gujarat is hovering around Rs 1,750-1,950 per 20 kg, while that of isabgol around Rs 850-1,000 per 20 kg, said traders.

Jeera and Isabgol come mainly from Barmer, Jodhpur, Sinhori, Sanchor, Pali, Abu Road and other parts of southern Rajasthan.