Officials from the Union Ministry of Agriculture and Ministry of Consumer Affairs will visit Maharashtra and Karnataka next week to assess the area under kharif onion, expected production, and market entry. The sharp rise in onion prices in different regions can be explained by the expected decline in production. Official sources said the team will also assess the ongoing late kharif onion seed and rabi-grown onion status in the two states. “The visit is crucial because the center must take political measures based on the commission’s report. Currently, a minimum export price (MEP) has been established for onions, which replaces the previous export customs duty, and if the commission considers the situation serious, an export ban may apply,” the expert said. During the visit, the central team will visit large production clusters, the most important onion markets and warehouses. He will also interact with various stakeholders to assess the situation, according to sources, the team is likely to meet officials from the agriculture and horticulture department as well.
If the team is in Nashik, Ahmednagar, and Pune district of Maharashtra from 6th to 8th. In November, Karnataka is scheduled for November 8-10 in Bagalkot and Gadag. Led by Subhas Chandra Meena, director, of the consumer affairs department, the team includes Manoj, Pankaj Kumar, and BK Prusty from the agriculture ministry.
Sale of cooperatives
Mother Dairy Safal stores in Delhi and surrounding areas of the National Capital Region will sell cooking oil at ₹ 25/kg from Sunday to moderate consumers amid rising onion prices, the consumer protection ministry said on Saturday. Kendriya Bhandar, a national retail cooperative, started selling the bulb at its Delhi-NCR outlets on November 3. Hyderabad Association of Agricultural Cooperatives also sells subsidized onions in Telangana and other southern states. So far, limited sales have continued through the NCCF and Nafed offices of cooperatives and mobile vans since October. While Nafed has so far set up 329 stores consisting of mobile vans and station stores in 55 cities of 21 states, NCCF has set up 457 stores in 54 cities of 20 states, the ministry said.
“The ministry has launched aggressive marketing of buffer onions to provide relief to consumers from the recent rise in onion prices due to delayed arrival of the Kharif crop,” the statement said. The wholesale onion price fell to ₹ 3,650 per quintal on November 3 from ₹ 4,800 per quintal on October 28 at the Lasalgaon mandi in Maharashtra. However, the all-India average onion price rose 1 percent on Saturday to ₹ 4,954.68 per quintal from ₹ 4,893.35 on Friday, official data from the ministry showed. Retail prices also rose to ₹ 60.3/kg from ₹ 59.56 per day. In most states, the average price has increased by 80-100 percent per month. The buffer storage capacity has increased this year from 2.5 liters in 2022-23 to 7 lakh tonnes (lt) and 5.06 liters of onions have already been procured since April.
