Odisha govt asks vendors to sell onions at Rs 17 per kg

Odisha government has asked vendors to sell onions at 17 per kilogram in a bid to prevent black marketing.
"Vendors must sell onion at the price of Rs 17 per kilogram. Action will be taken against the violators.
Fair price shops are selling onions at Rs 17 in the twin cities and we will extend the facility to other 'Maitree' shops in the districts soon," food supply and consumer welfare minister S N Patro said.
Meanwhile, the food supply and consumer welfare department has started selling onions at the model fair-price (Maitree) shops in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack and launched raids to check hoarding of onions.

The government action came in view of a tremedous rise in the price of onion.
While the price of a kilogram of onion was between Rs 10 and Rs 12 ten days ago, it has increased to Rs 20 or Rs 22 per kilogram.

Onion traders, however, said that heavy flood caused damage of onion crop in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh which supply onion to Odisha.
Traders, however, opposed the government's decision and said that it is not possible to sell onion at Rs 17 per kg.
"If the market price is fixed at Rs 19, then vendors may get Rs 2 profit per kilogram. But with the government fixing the price at Rs 17 per kilogram, it will not give any benefit to traders," said Odisha Byabasayee Sangha secretary Sudhakar Panda.