Onion Prices Surge To Rs 100/kg Ahead Of Festivities

Onion prices have soared to Rs 80-100 per kg across cities in India due to shortage in supply caused by unseasonal rains that have damaged crops. It is expected that rates will cross Rs 100 per kg in the coming days as there is no sign of fresh crop coming to the markets soon.

Lasalgaon wholesale market in Nashik district of Maharashtra, one of the biggest onion markets in the country as well as Asia, received only 4,000 quintals of onion on Thursday, according to a Mumbai Mirror report, against its average supply of 15,000 quintals. An official of the market told the local newspaper that the wholesale price for the day was Rs 62 a kg.

Nashik, Pune and Ahmednagar are the highest contributors of onion supply coming from Maharashtra. Overall, states of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka, Rajasthan and UP contribute 90 percent of the onion supply in India.

In Lasalgaon, according to a Hindustan Times report, the prices of onions soared to Rs 7,050 per quintal on Thursday from Rs 4,801 per quintal a month ago.

Due to shortage of supply coming from this major onion market, onion prices soared to Rs 120 per kg in Chandigarh, Rs 100 in Ludhiana and Hyderabad, Rs 80 in Mumbai and Rs 83 in Chennai.

In most cities the spike as recent as the last 2 days.

Meanwhile, two men were arrested by the Pune rural police for allegedly stealing 550 kilograms of onion, worth Rs 55,000 from Mauje Devjali village in Junnar taluka on Thursday.