Price of Teja variety of red chilli touches a new high in Khammam

There is very high demand for the variety in international markets

The price of the famous ‘Teja’ variety of red chilli at the Agricultural Market in Khammam, housing Telangana’s second biggest chilli market yard, hit a new high on Monday.

Red chilli trading opened at the market yard on an optimistic note on Monday morning with the produce being auctioned for a price of ₹25,550 per quintal.

The upswing in the price of Teja variety of red chilli is driven by multiple factors, including huge demand in the international market and short supply of the commodity due to relatively low yield because of the ‘invasive pest’ (Thrips parvispinus) attack, the market sources said.

At the fag end of last month, it fetched a price of ₹21,625 a quintal and subsequently surged reaching the record level.

The acreage of red chilli crop in the district had decreased from 1.03 lakh acres in 2021-2022 to 69,888 acres during 2022-2023.

The lion’s share of the Teja variety of red chilli produced in the district is being exported mainly to China.

Addressing the farmers at the market yard here on Monday morning, Transport Minister Puvvada Ajay Kumar said that there was a huge demand for Teja variety of red chilli being grown in Khammam district in the domestic and international markets. Teja variety of red chilli is in high demand in several countries, mainly in China. Various Chinese mills are procuring lakhs of quintals of the famed red chilli from Khammam district for multifarious uses, he noted.