Laughing all the way to banks after their crop recorded a surplus this year, farmers are pouring in at these markets in large numbers.

Dealers at the Sector 7 second-hand car market that opens every Sunday say though farmers were hardly a part of their clientele, their numbers have gone up significantly in the last few weeks. Coming all the way to the city from far-flung villages across Punjab and Haryana, farmers are laying hands on SUVs in particular. The reason: the northern states have seen a good yield of paddy and cotton this year giving a major boost to the annual income of farmers.

“There seems to be no stopping farmers from buying second-hand cars. The farmer as consumer is having the last laugh,” said Rupinder Bir Singh, president, Car Dealers Association, Chandigarh.

Gigantic SUVs and jeeps in particular have become sudden favourites. “It all depended on the income some time ago. Now, it’s the Scorpios and Safaris that are selling like hot cakes in the second-hand deal. Most villagers are making payment in cash and rarely avail of loans,” said Sukhwinder Singh of Perfect Car bazaar.

Amrit Pal Singh, a farmer from Mansa, had come to the city by bus to buy a car for himself. Elated after making an extra profit this year, Amrit said he will drive back a Safari. “I keep busy the rest of the year and this is the best time for us to buy a car. It was a dream to own one. It became a reality today, thanks to the huge surplus in crop this year,” he said.

Impact of recession on second-hand car prices

The global recession and the recent price reduction by car manufacturers has pulled down the prices of second-hand cars in the city by five to eight percent, say car dealers.

“The prices of almost all makes have come down, leading to a rise in sale of cars by 20 to 30 per cent,” said Rupinder Singh.