Retail prices of onion have increased by 25-50 per cent in the national capital region; it iscurrently selling at Rs 50-70/kg, depending on quality. Even Mother Dairy, a subsidiary of the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB),has raised prices at its retail outlets.

The price hike comes at the end of the 10-day Navratra festival, with Dussehra celebrated on Tuesday.

“The price was Rs 40/kg until three days back, but now I am selling at Rs 50/kg, whereas it is higher even at Mother Dairy’s Safal outlet, as well as other markets,” said Kapil Tyagi, who owns a daily needs shop in a residential society in Noida, Uttar Pradesh. He said prices have increased in the local mandi, but he was selling at a lower rate since he was exhausting his old stock.

Sudhir Kumar, a vendor in Sector 135, said onions prices, at Rs 40/kg on Monday, increased to Rs 50/kg Tuesday, and were at that level on Wednesday. In the retail market in Noida, inferior quality onions commanded a price of Rs 50/kg, whereas the medium variety was pegged at Rs 60/kg, and superior at Rs 70/kg.

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On the other hand, Mother Dairy had increased the rate to Rs 56/kg in Noida, from Rs 49/kg on Tuesday, Rs 45/kg on October 20 and Rs 42/kg before the Navratri festival began. In Delhi, Mother Dairy was selling onion at Rs 60/kg.

“Overall, the price was around Rs 40/kg before the Navratri festival, and Rs 60/kg now in the National Capital Region. Subdued demand during Navratri has prevented an escalation in prices, even as rates were moving higher in Maharashtra’s producing region over two months back, when the government imposed export duty to increase domestic availability,” said R. K. Gupta, an onion expert.

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Kharif grown onion, which is normally harvested in October-November, started arriving from mid-September this year. Due to the 36 per cent drop to about 58,000 hectares in sowing area in Maharashtra, prices started moving up. Only the late-kharif crop, expected to arrive from last week of November, can boost availability, experts said.

“Onion is seeing an increased demand post Navratri whereas the supplies/arrivals are lower in Delhi. The fresh kharif crop is delayed and the inflow of stored onions has gone down drastically in the last fortnight, fuelling the demand-supply gap and pushing up the consumer prices. However, we are making our best efforts to supply onions at reasonable prices in comparison to the local retail markets,” a Mother Dairy spokesman said in reply to a query on the sudden spurt in price.

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