Prices remain muted despite decline in crop arrivals across mandis: CRISIL

Report points to the possibility of grains being hoarded by farmers and traders to be sold at a later date when mandi operations and logistics normalise

Prices of agricultural crops remained subdued despite a sharp decline in arrivals of across mandis, a CRISIL study finds.

There has been a sharp decline in arrivals during the first two weeks of April across agriculture commodities. While there are four primary reasons for this -- delayed rabi harvest, labour shortage, lack of transport, and reduced mandi operations -- grains are also said to have been hoarded by farmers and traders to be sold at a later date when mandi operations and logistics normalise.

"But in the case of perishables such as fruits and vegetables, farmers are bearing the brunt