Are high onion prices changing taste of your platter? Govt takes major decision to bring down prices

Onion prices have made the Indian platter expensive amid the festive season as the prices have increased in double digits in the past ten 10 days. Onion prices rose by Rs 11.56 per kg, taking the all-India retail price of onion to Rs 51.95 per kg, which was 12.13 per cent higher than the last year’s price of Rs 46.33 per kg., said the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution. A steep rise in the onion prices has been attributed to heavy rainfall in onion growing districts of Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Madhya Pradesh, which had caused damage to the standing Kharif crop, stored onion, and seed nurseries. 

In the wake of high prices, the government today announced that onion from the buffer stock is being released in a calibrated manner from the second half of September 2020 to major mandis and retail suppliers such as Safal, Kendriya Bhandar, NCCF, and state governments. It assured that more will be done in the coming days. It is to be noted that the government had built up onion buffer stock from the Rabi season.

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In another major effort to ascertain abundant supply by importing the onion, the government today relaxed the conditions for fumigation and additional declaration on Phytosanitary Certificate under the Plant Quarantine Order, 2003 for import up to 15 December 2020. Further, the Indian High Commissions have been instructed in the relevant countries to contact the traders for pushing for greater imports of onions to the country. 

Such consignments of imported onions that arrive in Indian port without fumigation would be fumigated in India by the importer through an accredited treatment provider. The government also expects that Kharif Crop of 37 LMT will start arriving in the Mandis that will give reprieve to the rising prices. Meanwhile, the government had put a ban on onion export last month, to ensure availability to domestic consumers at reasonable rates during the lean season before the Kharif onion arrival. However, the ban on exports was lifted earlier this month.