3 agencies drop onion prices by Rs 5 to Rs 35/kg

Agri co-operative Nafed, NCCF and Kendriya Bhandar today reduced onion prices at their outlets in the national capital by Rs 5, selling it for Rs 35 a kg as rates of the kitchen staple fell in the wholesale market.

Mother Dairy, however, continued to sell onion at the higher rate of Rs 40 per kg.

"A decision has been taken to reduce the retail price of onion from Rs 40 to Rs 35 per kg with immediate effect owing to fall in onion prices in wholesale market," Nafed said in a statement.

Nafed, which along with 12 other agencies regulates onion exports, said it has decided to sell onion at the cost price, without keeping any margins. The move is aimed at providing relief to people, it added.

NCCF (National Consumer Co-operative Federation) and Kendriya Bhandar also dropped onion rates by Rs 5 to make the commodity available at their outlets for Rs 35/kg, sources at the two agencies said.

But, Mother Dairy said it hasn't dropped the rates and was focussed more on proper sorting of the produce to ensure that people get quality onion.

"There is no drop in our prices. We are concentrating more on quality of onion provided at our outlets which are being send only after proper sorting," Chief Operating Officer Mother Dairy Sunil Bansal told PTI.

Mother Dairy, Delhi, which was set up in 1974 under the Operation Flood Programme, is now a wholly owned company of the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB).

Mother Dairy has 300 outlets, while Nafed and NCCF have 25 outlets each in the national capital and Kendriya Bhandar about 75.

They are all trying to provide succour to people from scathing prices of onion, which soared to Rs 70-80/kg last week, raising political concerns across the country.

Sources at these agencies said they were not getting any subsidy for selling onion at low rates.

They said they were purchasing onion from the open market and making it available at their outlets at cheaper rates.

Onion prices had more than doubled early last week to Rs 70-85 per kg across major cities.

The sharp spurt was blamed on crop damage in Maharashtra and Karnataka -- which account for 40 per cent of the country's total production of 12 million tonnes -- because of excessive rains.

The Centre has banned onion exports and abolished customs duty on its imports to rein in prices, which have fallen about 50 per cent in the wholesale markets of Nashik district to Rs 32-35 per kg.