Govt has imposed a 40% export duty (effective till 31st Dec 2023) on onions to curb price surges and stabilize domestic supply.
Avg. onion price across India is Rs 30.72/kg. Crisil in its report has warned that onion prices could touch Rs. 60-70/kg by the end of the month.
March rains, heatwaves damaged crops, shortened the shelf-life of onions, and caused panic selling from the farmers.
Heatwaves have affected onion quality, leading to an increase in the stock of bad-quality onions, resulting in good-quality onions being expensive despite sufficient stock.
Centre has acquired 2.50 lakh tons of onions in 2022-23 for a buffer, surpassing all past records.
Onion exports have soared to 64%, reaching a 6-year peak at 25.25 lakh tonnes in 2022-23.
India's July inflation surges to a 15-month peak at 7.44%, driven by soaring food prices, exceeding RBI's target of 2%-6% for the first time in 5 months.