Wholesale prices at Lasalgaon have almost touched Rs 60/kg, while retail prices have risen up to Rs 80 per kg
New Delhi : With onion prices skyrocketing, Centre today wrote to chief ministers of all states including poll-bound Bihar to take stringent action against hoarders and black marketeers to control rates of the kitchen staple. Stating that the situation has “worsened” due to hoarding of onion by both retail and wholesale traders, Union Food and Consumer Affairs Minister Ram Vilas Paswan said the states should take action under the Essential Commodities Act and impose stock holding limits.
Wholesale onion prices at Lasalgaon in Maharasthra, Asia’s biggest onion market, have almost touched Rs 60/kg, while retail prices across the country have risen up to Rs 80 per kg, adding to consumer woes. As prices are ruling at higher level despite imports and restriction on exports, the Centre has asked the Maharasthra government to crack down on hoarders and black marketeers in various parts of the state to boost supply at Lasalgaon, which sets price trend across the country.
In the letter to Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Paswan emphasised the need for strict implementation of the provisions of the Essential Commodities Act (ECA) and taking stringent steps against hoarding and blackmarketing.
“There is a production shortfall of only five lakh tonnes in the country. Hoarders get active when there is production fall. The state governments should take action against hoarders to control prices,” Paswan said. The country’s total onion output is estimated to be at 189 lakh tonnes in 2014-15 crop year (July-June), slightly lower than 194 lakh tonnes in the previous year.
