Navi Mumbai, Nov. 14 -- Vegetable prices in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) have risen sharply after Diwali due to a temporary slowdown in harvesting and transportation activities. With farmers, agricultural labourers and transporters taking extended festival breaks, the movement of farm produce from major agricultural belts such as Pune, Nashik, Satara and Ahmednagar has been hit, resulting in fluctuations in arrivals at the Vashi Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC) wholesale market. "With harvesting momentum slowing down temporarily, key wholesale commodities experienced immediate upward price pressures," Mahesh Patil, a wholesale vegetable trader. The market had faced supply pressures earlier due to erratic monsoon conditions and crop damage in major vegetable-growing belts. According to APMC officials and wholesale traders, the current price surge should ease in a couple of weeks, as farmers, agricultural labourers and transporters return to regular schedules. Prices are expected to gradually stabilise by the end of November, although the extent of the reduction will depend on fresh arrivals and local market conditions....