Delhi seeks buffer onions from Centre amid price rise

Collaboration with central agencies is ongoing to determine quantities, rates, and methods for distribution to mitigate the financial burden on poorer citizens.

The Delhi government has sought allocation of onions from the Centre’s buffer stock for distribution in the Capital through the public distribution system (PDS), a first for Delhi, given the higher-than-average national price of the bulb over the past week. The quantity to be allocated and the distribution mechanism are being worked out, consumer affairs secretary Nidhi Khare told HT.

The consumer affairs department stated that Delhi’s retail onion price was ₹55 per kilogram (kg) on August 25—23% higher than the all-India average of ₹44.72 per kg. (PTI)

Delhi food and supplies minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa said the quantity and rates for distribution have not been decided yet and details were being worked out with central government agencies. Apart from the PDS centres, subsidised onions will also be sold through mandis and kiosks across the city, he said.

“The decision to distribute onions through PDS was taken by the chief minister after a review meeting on Tuesday to ensure that the poorer sections do not feel the pinch of the increasing prices. The quantities that we will need, rates and the modalities are being worked out by the Delhi State Civil Supplies Corporation,” said Sirsa, adding that the details were likely to be finalised by Thursday.

Delhi has around 850 PDS distribution centres, with about 8 million beneficiaries.

Delhi plans subsidised onion sales through PDS centres, mandis and kiosks

The request from the state government comes as onion prices in Delhi remain above the national average. The consumer affairs department put Delhi’s retail onion price at ₹55 per kilogram (kg) on August 25—23% higher than the all-India average of ₹44.72 per kg.

On August 24, onions were priced in retail at around ₹60 per kg in Chennai, ₹55 per kg in Delhi and ₹53 per kg in Kolkata, while the all-India average was ₹43.53 per kg.

To be sure, the national average cost is up around 56% from a year ago, when onions retailed in Delhi at ₹33 per kg.

Wholesale prices have also risen, indicating that the increase is not limited to retail margins. The all-India wholesale onion price was ₹36.73 per kg on August 25, up from ₹27.5 per kg on July 25, and ₹22.54 per kg a year earlier.

450 tonnes of onions to reach Delhi on first Kanda Express

Khare said that the Centre will begin releasing buffer onions in major centres on Thursday. The first Kanda Express—a special freight train to mass transport onions—carrying 450 tonneswill reach Delhi early Thursday, with the retail stock to be sold at ₹35 per kg through National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd (NAFED), National Cooperative Consumers Federation of India Ltd (NCCF) and Kendriya Bhandar outlets.

“Like previous year, onions via rail rakes is being brought in to ensure no deficiency of availability. We don’t want traders and intermediaries to game the system, and will be keeping a close eye on the market. Half of our 450-tonne stock will likely be infused through retail intervention; the remaining may be infused through wholesale mandis. All efforts are being made for retail first,” Khare said.

According to the secretary, the stock is likely to last the national capital for a week.

The Centre is also planning sales through around 110 Kendriya Bhandar outlets, more than 150 Safal stores and NAFED and NCCF outlets, with ramps at prominent locations where sales are generally high. With this intervention, the government expects retail onion prices to fall to around ₹40 per kg soon.

Khare said that stocks are also being sent to Chennai, Kolkata, Ernakulam, Guwahati, Varanasi, Lucknow, Patna, Chandigarh, Jammu and Amritsar.

The Centre has so far bought about 120,000 tonnes of onion, against a target of 200,000 tonnes, from the wholesale market of Nashik in Maharashtra and will offload it in major consumer markets showing an uptick in price.