Onion saga: Imported at whopping ₹58/kg, govt now forced to sell it for ₹6/kg

The onions which were imported in India at the rate of ₹55-58 per kg between November 2019 and January 2020 are now being sold at the rate of ₹6/kg, a report by The Print says. The rejection by the states, supplies chains and distributing agency Safal of Mother Dairy became the main reason behind the throwaway price of imported onions.

The onions were rejected by states and other supply chains mainly because of the taste and colour of imported onions which did not suit the Indian kitchen. As a result, these onions were rotting.

The central government will now lift the export restriction on onions from March 15.

The prices of onions in Indian market rose to as much as ₹100/kg in 2019 due to a drop in production by 30-40 per cent as the Maharashtra and Karnataka were hit by heavy rainfall and flood-like situations which destroyed the onion crops.

But the onion imports were delayed and by the time it arrived, the prices had almost come to normal due to the availability of local onion variety.

Moreover, the imported onions did not go very well with the Indian taste. As a result, about 90% of the 33,600 metric tonnes of imported onion is lying unused. This means that the government will have to bear a loss of about ₹200 crores, according to The Print.

Most of the stock of imported onions is lying in the open at Mumbai port and is fast rotting, an official in the Union Consumer Affairs Ministry told The Print. Earlier, the government had made an effort to sell the imported onions to Delhi mandis and export it to Bangladesh and Maldives at a lower price. But Bangladesh prefered the indigenous produce and Maldives did not respond. Delhi mandis, however, bought the onions.