Inflation and depreciating rupee, leading to hike in price of every essential commodity has been making headlines since a couple of months. However, the rising price of onion seems to have brought in turmoil in every household, be it an average middle class or a poor farmer’s family. Onion is an essential ingredient in almost every cuisine prepared in an Indian home. Due to this reason, any tussle regarding onion becomes an effective vote fetching agenda for the opposition.
At present, onions prices have quadrupled from last year to a record Rs. 90 to Rs. 100. The probable reasons for this could be:
- Price of onions has been high since January this year, due to lack of enough water for the crop. However, the government had predicted that prices would drop following good monsoon but heavy rains seem to have damaged crops.
- Moreover, since monsoon rains lasted unusually long, it means that the crops will not be harvested before November.
- Despite enough production of the vegetable, limited hoarding supplies might have pushed up prices.
- Poor infrastructure, transport and storage issues could also be a reason for this hike in price.
Involvement of middlemen in the onion trade also makes matters worse for both farmers and retailers. This issue has been lingering on since about two decades and the government should now wholesale retailers to get onions directly from farmers. At the end of the day, common man has been the worst hit by the skyrocketing prices. So I guess, this Diwali week we might have to give the sumptuous and extravagant dinner parties at home a miss as rising price of onions and vegetables appears to be a dampener. This situation is not only expected to dig a hole in household budgets this festive season, but also become a political contention just ahead of assembly elections.
picture courtesy- the australian