Interministerial meeting on Tuesday for onion price review

May discuss complete ban on export

The ministry of food and consumer affairs proposes to call for inter-ministrial meeting next week to decide on exports of onion following consistent rise in prices.

 

The ministry is of the view that  part of the reason for steep rise in prices is hoarding  by bulk traders. The state government of Maharastra has been alerted about the problem and even been advised to impose stock limits , said consumers.

 

Sources are of the view that the ministry in consultation with commerce ministry will  seek a inter ministrial view on the issue. According to officials, even if total ban is not advisable given the country’s export earnings,  the commerce ministry can always impose a minimum export price( MEP) for exports.  The MEP was abolished some time back to augment export of onion.

 

The retail prices of onion are hovering around Rs 35-40  per kg .

While the ministry of agriculture is against any action on export of onion, the state government of Maharastra has specifically asked the ministry of commerce  to seek their comments and consider them  before taking any action on export of onions. The ministry of agriculture is of the view that  the rise in onion prices is a "temporary situation" as heavy rains in major producing states like Maharashtra have affected supplies.

     

Onion prices are likely to be under pressure till October when the new crop is expected to hit the market. Reportedly, India has exported 5,11,616 tonnes of onion amounting Rs 776.47 crore in first quarter of this fiscal against 5,17,274 tonnes in the year-ago period. The production of onion is expected to be normal at around 15-16 million tonnes this year.

India exports 10% of its total onion outputto countries like  Bangladesh, Malaysia and Singapore. According to officials from National Horitultural Research and Development Foundation ( NHRDF), the way out seems to be cut down on the consumption  of onion by domestic consumers  as  supply of northern variety of onion has been exhausted and demand is being met through old stocks. The current rise in onion prices was primarily due to the slow release of stored onions by farmers, especially in Maharashtra, in anticipation of better prices in the coming days. Besides, the new crop from Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh Karnataka and Rajasthan is expected to hit market from October onwards.