No more tears! Export ban makes onion ‘cheapest’ vegetable

Barring the Northeast, retail onion prices have dipped by Rs 15-20 per kg across the country

Rainfall in May, although not unusual, happened at a time when onion harvesting got delayed, leading to greater losses. (File Photo)

Onion prices have depreciated significantly in retail markets since the Centre banned the export of the bulb around a month ago.

Across the country, the average retail price of onion is around Rs 30-40 per kg. Retail onion prices in Maharashtra, during the first week of December, were in the range of Rs 52-55 per kg. In Delhi, onions are selling at Rs 40 per kg as against Rs 60 per kg a month ago.

Barring the Northeast, retail onion prices have dipped by Rs 15-20 per kg across the country (Source: Price Monitoring Cell, Ministry of Consumer Affairs).

Onion is now one of the cheapest fresh vegetables. At Pune’s wholesale market, almost all common vegetables like okra (Rs 60/kg) tomato (Rs 25/kg), green peas (Rs 40/kg) brinjal (Rs 50/kg) are costlier than onion – which is selling at Rs 22 per kg.

The low prices of onions have dashed the hopes of farmers of getting good returns. At the Lasalgaon wholesale market in Nashik district, the price of the bulb currently ranges between Rs 1,860-1,950 per quintal. Whereas onions were selling between Rs 3,800-4,000 per quintal a month ago.

The decision of the Union government to suspend exports has caused concern among farmers and traders alike. Ajit Navale of the Left-aligned All India Kisan Sabha said the export ban has caused great distress to farmers. “Many farmers had to postpone their family functions. We need a quick resolution of the same,” he added.

Parthasarathi Biswas

Partha Sarathi Biwas is an Assistant Editor with The Indian Express with 10+ years of experience in reporting on Agriculture, Commodities and Developmental issues. He has been with The Indian Express since 2011 and earlier worked with DNA. Partha's report about Farmers Producer Companies (FPC) as well long pieces on various agricultural issues have been cited by various academic publications including those published by the Government of India. He is often invited as a visiting faculty to various schools of journalism to talk about development journalism and rural reporting. In his spare time Partha trains for marathons and has participated in multiple marathons and half marathons. ... Read More

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Onion prices