Price of onions skyrockets due to supply crunch

Price of onions in Chandigarh has skyrocketed in the past few days as the vegetable was being sold up to ₹75/kg till October 21. The rate still continues to hover

Price of onions in Chandigarh has skyrocketed in the past few days as the vegetable was being sold up to ₹75/kg till October 21. The rate still continues to hover over ₹65/kg due to shortage of supply. Prices of other staple vegetables such as potatoes and tomatoes also continued to be on the higher side.

Prices of other staple vegetables such as potatoes and tomatoes also continued to be on the higher side. (HT File Photo)

Rashwinder Singh, auction recorder of the Chandigarh wholesale mandi in Sector 26, said, “Due to flooding and bad weather conditions in the southern part of the country, onion from Maharashtra was unable to reach the city in enough quantity. Even now, the supply is low. In fact, supply from other places, including Rajasthan, is required to bring the prices down.”

The rise in tomatoes and potatoes’ rates is being attributed to transportation issues. “We would earlier get potatoes and tomatoes from Himachal Pradesh, but that is not feasible this year. Only a higher variety of both the vegetables is available, which is why prices are on the higher side in the market,” Rashwinder added.

Prices of vegetables coming to the city from Punjab, including bitter gourd, bottle gourd and eggplant, continue to be remain stable, while rate of locally grown cucumber has come down due to good supply. As per officials, prices of the staple vegetables will continue to stay high till the end of November.