Onion prices down nearly 50 per cent in two weeks

Onion prices have fallen by almost 50 per cent in the last fortnight to Rs 40 per kg in retail markets in the national capital region, with new crops arriving. The bulb was priced at Rs 70-80 per kilogram two weeks ago.

Potato prices have also declined to Rs 19-20 in the NCR from Rs 40-44 a kg a fortnight ago.

Tomato, however, remained costly at Rs 58-60 a kg.

Mother Dairy, which has about 400 retail outlets in the national capital region (NCR), is selling tomatoes at Rs 58 per kg, onions at Rs 40 per kg, Rs 18-20 a kg for potatoes depending on the quality.

"A substantial increase in supplies of onion and potato from key growing states has pushed prices downwards, whereas tomato supplies are more or less the same," National Horticultural Research and Development Foundation (NHRDF) director R P Gupta said.

He further siad there has been a jump in supply of onion from Rajasthan and Maharashtra, while it continued from Karnataka too, bring down prices by almost 50 per cent. In potatoes, supply is increasing from Punjab and Haryana.

"Supply of tomato is still the same, but in coming days it is expected to increase especially from Madhya Pradesh and prices are likely to come down," Mr Gupta said.

Prices might crash down in December, if the trend continued, according to traders.

From the second week of November prices of almost all vegetables, especially onion, are falling on daily basis and with the good forecast of crops and looking at the present scenario in market, it seems like prices would further fall in December," Azadpur Mandi Onion Merchant Traders Association

president Surerndera Budhiraj said.

Meanwhile, costlier vegetables such as onions drove retail inflation to 10.09 per cent in October, in double

digits after seven months.

Exports of onion in October have fallen sharply by 86 per cent to 22,000 tonnes compared with the same month last year as government raised minimum export price (MEP) to Rs 1,150 a tonne to control rising domestic prices.