Pakistani onions bring down prices in Kashmir

Onion prices started decreasing here Saturday because of its arrival from Pakistan.

Onions were selling at Rs.100 per kg here till Friday, but recorded a decline in prices Saturday with retail traders selling it at Rs.75 per kg.

The wholesale onion traders here are attributing the fall in prices to the arrivals from Pakistan.

"Onions have arrived here through LoC trade from Chakan Da Bagh and also from Punjab after their import from Pakistan.

"This has brought down the wholesale price of onions in Srinagar and other parts of the Valley. We sold Pakistani onions at Rs.55-60 per kg in the wholesale market today (Saturday) morning.

"Retailers are now selling the same at Rs.70-75 per kg in the markets," said Abdul Hamid, 50, a wholesale vegetable trader here.

Another wholesale trader Muzaffar Ahmad, 48, said the onions from Nasik, Maharashtra, are the most sought after here as these are of a better quality.

"Nasik onions are better than those reaching here from Pakistan," he said.

Muhammad Ashfaq, also a wholesale vegetable trader, said, "Onion prices will start coming down after Diwali as yield from other parts of the country would start reaching the markets."

"Now that the prices have started coming down, the tendency of bulk buying will also be checked," he added.