Man sells tomatoes at ₹20 per kg for a day in Chennai. But there is a catch

A shopkeeper in Tamil Nadu's Cuddalore sold tomatoes for ₹20 per kilo to mark the fourth anniversary of his shop.

As common people are struggling with the skyrocketing prices of vegetables, including tomatoes, which made the most headlines, a shopkeeper in Tamil Nadu's Cuddalore sold the vegetable for just ₹20 per kilo on Friday to mark the fourth anniversary of his shop.

D Rajesh in Tamil Nadu's Cuddalore sold tomatoes at ₹20 per kilo to mark the fourth anniversary of his shop. (Reuters/ Representative image)

38-year-old D Rajesh, the owner of D R Vegetables and onion shop in Sellakupam, said he bought 550 kgs of tomatoes at ₹60 per kilo, including the transportation charges, from Karnataka's Bengaluru. He then sold the vegetable at a loss of ₹40 per kilo to ‘help the needy,’ reported TOI.

Informing that the offer did not let people stockpile the vegetable, he said, “People were restricted to buy only one kg per person as I wanted as many people possible to benefit from the concession. The entire stock was sold in a few minutes. I established the shop after working for more than 30 years in my uncle's shop. I revised the rate to 48 per kg on Saturday. Again, I made a brisk business selling more than 280kg of tomatoes on Saturday."

Recounting how he sold onions at ₹10 when their prices were soaring, he said that he gives the discount every year to mark his shop's anniversary. "When I established the shop, in 2019, onion prices were soaring above 100 per kg. But I sold it at 10 per kg as an opening offer," he said.

In Chennai, tomatoes are currently selling at ₹100-130 per kg. Last month, the state government decided to sell the vegetable at a subsidized rate of ₹68 per kg at ration shops in a bid to bring some respite to the consumers amid the price spiral.