Published 07:27 IST, December 10th 2019
Central Government revises stock limit of onions for retailers
In an announcement on Monday, the central government declared that the stock holding limits of onions for retailers has been decreased with immediate effect
The government has been taking reactive measures to ensure that the price of onions does not increase further and that the citizens can breathe easily. On Monday evening, the government's principal spokesperson, KS Dhatwalia, tweeted and said that the government had reduced the stock holding permits of onions for retailers.
Change in stock holding
Dhatiwalia said that the central government had decided to decreased the stick holding permits of onions for retailers, and has brought down the permit from 5 MT to 2 MT. The permit levels, however, remain the same for wholesalers at 25 MT. He further added that importers will continue to remain exempted from these stock limits. This is the second such revision in the past few weeks.
In order to arrest the increasing price of onions, Consumer Affairs Minister, Ram Vilas Paswan, had last week announced a number of steps that the government had taken in order to soften the price of onions. He later announced that the government has decided to import 11,000 Metric Ton (MT) of onion from Turkey and 6,090 MT from Egypt. These onions will be available in the market between December 15 and January 15.
The government has said that the increasing prices is because of a one month delay in monsoon, which leads to another delay in sowing. This further delays the process of production and distribution in the market. Extremely heavy rainfall in certain regions such as Karnataka, Maharashtra, and Rajasthan has resulted in a 26 per cent reduction in onion production.
As per the ministry's data, maximum retail prices are ruling at Rs 165 per kg on Monday, while the modal price was at Rs 100 per kg. In most cities, onions are quoted over Rs 100 per kg in retail markets, pinching hard on consumers' pockets.
The government has taken several measures to improve the supply of onion across the country and check price rise. Besides banning export, the government is boosting the supply through various modes including through the sale of buffer stock onions at subsidised rates and imports.
Updated 08:40 IST, December 10th 2019