consumer A senior official of the Ministry of Affairs said on Wednesday that onion prices are expected to fall further in the coming days. The official said that the arrival of the new Kharif crop has started. He said that at present the average retail price of onion is Rs 54 per kg and onion prices have declined in the last one month following the sale of subsidized onions by the government at major consumer centres. To provide relief to consumers from inflation, the government is selling onions from the buffer stock in the retail market at a concessional rate of Rs 35 per kg in Delhi-NCR and other cities.
Government has buffer stock of 4.5 lakh tonnes
The government has a buffer stock of 4.5 lakh tonnes of onion, out of which 1.5 lakh tonnes have been sold so far. The ministry official said that for the first time, buffer stock onion is being transported to major consumer centers through railways and this is helping in increasing the supply. “The government will continue to transport the onion buffer stock by rail until the stock is exhausted and prices stabilise,” the official said.
4850 tonnes of onion supplied with the help of goods trains
In the last few weeks, about 4850 tonnes of onion has been supplied to Delhi, Chennai and Guwahati through goods trains. Maximum 3170 tonnes of onion has been delivered to price sensitive Delhi. “Another train by cooperative Nafed with 730 tonnes is expected to reach Delhi tomorrow,” a consumer affairs official said. He said that this will increase the availability of onion in the city and reduce the prices.
Onion prices also increased due to festivals
He said that there has been a sudden pressure on onion prices in the last two days because the mandis were closed and the workers working in the mandis were also on leave due to festivals. However, now the situation has started improving. The official also said that this time the production is also expected to increase.
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