Many traders in the Delhi market have already stared sourcing onions of Afghan origin via Pakistan. “They have to pay Rs 30 extra for a plateful of onions”, Pritam Singh, a dhaba owner in Chandigarh told IANS.
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Onions are staple food across all classes, castes and religions in India. “30 per kg”, Khan wrote in the letter.
Increasingly, it is beginning to resemble a throwback to 2013 when onion prices retailed at ‘ 100 a kg. At many places, onion prices crossed the Rs.
A worker sorts onions at a wholesale vegetable market in Chandigarh.
Wholesale dealers have indicated that if the present trend continues, onions could soon hit the Rs. “So, traders are holding up their stocks for prices to spike further”, said a government official.
In a dig at AAP government in Delhi, BJP today criticised it for not issuing even a single ad to inform people about the sale of subsidised onioins despite having budgeted Rs 526 crore for advertisements. 25 a kg and then started steadily rising.
However, market men also point to the massive hoarding of onions by wholesalers in some key cities and markets leading to spurt in prices of the commodity. “We were very hopeful after the (Narendra) Modi government was sworn in but prices have gone up and now we are a anxious lot”.
Union Government made an amendment of EC Act, 1955 on 1st July, 2015 to enable State Govt./UTs to impose stock limits on Onions for a further period of one year till 2nd July, 2016, said a statement.
“Onion prices have shot up because all the sown onion seeds got washed away due to rains”.
The domestic supply situation is unlikely to ease as planting of kharif onions are getting delayed due to lack of rainfall in Maharashtra, Patil said, adding that if it does not rain in the next 15 days, the problem will worsen. Onion price is likely to go up considering Varamahalakshmi festival this week. The Pune variety of onion has not come from Maharashtra region, either.
The Ministry also informed that the Small Farmers’ Agribusiness Consortium (SFAC) and the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (Nafed) had procured 5.857 tonnes of onions funded out of the price stabilization fund. He said the prices could increase on Monday and again during the festival.
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“Today, I am selling it at Rs”. In Shalimar Bagh and Ramesh Nagar, the price is Rs 70 and Rs 60 respectively for the same quantity. 39 per kg.in Delhi.
