Govt raises onion buffer; asks cooperatives to sell it at ₹25 per kg

In an unprecedented move, the central government has raised the quantum of onion buffer to 5 lakh metric tonne this year, after achieving the initial procurement target of 3 lakh metric tonne.

In this regard, the Department of Consumer Affairs has directed the National Cooperative Consumers' Federation of India (NCCF) and National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (NAFED) to procure 1 lakh tonne each to achieve the additional procurement target alongside calibrated disposal of the procured stocks in significant consumption centres.

Disposal of onions from the buffer has commenced, targeting major markets in States and union territories (UTs) where retail prices are above the all-India average and/or are significantly higher than the previous month, the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution says in a statement.

As on date, about 1,400 metric tonne of onions from the buffer have been dispatched to the targeted markets and are being continuously released to augment the availability, it says.

Apart from releasing in major markets, onions from the buffer are also being made available to retail consumers at a subsidised rate of ₹25 per kg through retail outlets and mobile vans of NCCF from Monday. "Retail sale of onion will be suitably enhanced in coming days by involving other agencies and e-commerce platforms," the consumer affairs ministry says.

“The multipronged measures taken by the Government onion like procurement for the buffer, targeted release of stocks and imposition of export duty will benefit the farmers and consumers by assuring remunerative prices to the onion farmers while ensuring continuous availability to the consumers at affordable prices,” the government says.

This comes weeks after the Centre slashed the retail price of tomatoes sold through its two cooperatives—the National Cooperative Consumers Federation (NCCF) and National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (NAFED).

In its monthly bulletin for August, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said that the genie of inflation is still out of the bottle. Headline inflation is expected to average well above 6% in the second quarter with the unprecedented shock of higher tomato prices spilling over to prices of other vegetables, the central bank said.

India's retail inflation surged to a 15-month high of 7.44% in July from 4.87% in June, breaching the Reserve Bank of India’s 6% upper tolerance limit. Inflation in the food and beverages group more than doubled to 10.6% in July from 4.7% in June led by high vegetable prices. Inflation also edged up in cereals, meat and fish, fruits, pulses, sugar and spices. On the other hand, inflation in eggs, milk and prepared meals softened while the rate of deflation in edible oils eased.