The retail price of onion has shown marked increase from end of August 2020, though the price level was below that of last year till October 18. A sharp spike in prices of onion in past 10 days by Rs.11.56 per kilo has taken the all-India retail price of onion to Rs.51.95 per kilo which was 12.13% higher than the last year’s price of Rs.46.33 per kg.

The government on 14.09.2020 took a pre-emptive measure by announcing a ban on onion export to ensure availability to domestic consumers at reasonable rates during the lean season before the Kharif onion arrival. While the rate at which retail prices increase had been moderated to some extent, recent instances of heavy rain fall in the major growing districts of Maharashtra, Karntaka and Madhya Pradesh had caused damage to standing Kharif crop, stored onion and seed nurseries. These developments on the weather front have resulted in sharp increase in onion prices.

The government has built up onion buffer stock from the Rabi onion – 2020. In order to moderate prices, onion from the buffer stock is being released in calibrated manner from second half of September, 2020 to major mandis, to retail supplier such as Safal, Kendriya Bhandar & NCCF and also to State Governments. More will be done in the coming days.

To facilitate the import of onion, the government has, on 21.10.2020, relaxed the conditions for fumigation and additional declaration on Phytosanitary Certificate under the Plant Quarantine Order, 2003 for import upto December 15, 2020. 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 which arrive in Indian port without fumigation and endorsement to that effect on the PSC, would be fumigated in India by the importer through an accredited treatment provider. If Stem and Bulbs nematode (Ditylenchus Dipsaci) or onion maggot (Hylimia antiqua) is detected it would be eliminated through fumigation and the consignments to be released with no additional inspection fee. An undertaking will be obtained from the importers that the onion will be use only for consumption and not for propagation. Such consignments of onions for consumption will not be subjected to four times additional inspection fee on account of non compliance of conditions of import under the PQ order, 2003.

An estimated Kharif Crop of 37 LMT is also likely to start arriving in the Mandis that will give reprieve to the rising prices.

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According to information available from the Lasalgaon market in Nashik district, the country’s main hub for the trade in the bulb, prices for average quality onion fell to Rs 38 per kilogramme this morning.

“We have received nearly 900 tonnes of onions till Wednesday afternoon,” Ashok Shetye, a trader from the Lasalgoan mandi told this reporter.

The supply was less than half till last weekend.

Traders at the Agriculture Produce Marketing Committee market at Navi Mumbai said farmers were harvesting their crop prematurely in order to benefit from the rise in onion prices.

“Prices were showing signs of coming down as large quantities of premature onions began coming into

the market for the past few days,” Samadhan Sanap, a Mumbai onion trader said.

The onions coming into the market now are red onions which are harvested in winter in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Gujarat. These onions have a short shelf life.

Onion arrivals are expected to surge in the coming days with reports of trucks being loaded with the bulb heading for Mumbai and other parts of the country, according to traders.

The wholesale prices of onions had crashed last year to just one rupee a kilogramme after arrivals in the markets fell to 2500 tonnes per day, according to traders.

Meanwhile, the first consignments of 740 tonnes onions being imported from Egypt is expected to touch Mumbai on Sunday.

According to traders here, orders to import at least two more shiploads from the African country have been placed.

Farmers’ groups in Maharashtra had criticised the government move to import onions when retail prices touched Rs 150 per kilogramme.

“The imported onions will begin arriving and supplies from India also begin to increase. This will prevent farmers from getting a fair price for their produce,” farm leader Raju Shetti of the Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana had told reporters last week.

Meanwhile, retail prices of onions continue to remain high as traders are still offloading their existing stock.

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Union Food and Consumer Affairs Minister Ram Vilas Paswan said that the government has decided to import one lakh tonnes of onions to control onion prices. MMTC will make the imported onions available for distribution in the country from November 15 to December 15 and Nafed has been entrusted with the responsibility of distributing the onions to every part of the country.

In a bid to curb onion prices, the Cabinet Secretary held a high level meeting with the Secretary of Consumer Affairs to review the onion crisis in many parts of the country.

According to the Department of Consumer Affairs, officials of the Ministry of Agriculture and Consumer Department, as well as officials of important government agencies associated with the Ministry of Food, have been directed to go to Turkey and Egypt and speed up the effort to import onions from there.

Simultaneously, MMTC has been asked to import large quantities of onions from Dubai and elsewhere so that the shortage of onions in the market can be removed quickly.

Advice to keep the mandis of Rajasthan open to ensure onion supply

The governments of Delhi and Rajasthan are also being asked to ensure that all the mandis remain open from November 9 to November 12, so that the onion supply is not interrupted. Unseasonal rains and floods in many states have damaged the onion crop, which is expected to reduce its production. To make up for this, the government has decided to provide facilities for buying onions from four countries – Iran, Turkey, Afghanistan and Egypt.

India has reached 2,500 tonnes of imported onions.Onion prices in bulk were at Rs 15 to 50 per kg in Kolhapur mandi in the mandis of Maharashtra, the major onion producing state, while it was priced at Rs 20 to 45 per kg at Jodhpur mandi in Rajasthan.

Delhi onion wholesaler Rajendra Sharma said that the daily arrival of new onions from Rajasthan has increased in Delhi, and its daily arrival is expected to increase further, which will bring down the prices.

According to sources, around 2,500 tonnes of imported onions have reached India and 80 are coming to Cantner, out of which 70 containers are coming from Egypt and 10 containers from Netherlands.

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