Monsoon fury: Onion prices surge in Delhi, Bihar

New Delhi [India], Sept 20 (ANI): The retail price of onion shot up to Rs 70 per kilogram in the capital on Friday due to a reduced supply of the crop owing to incessant rains and floods in many parts of the country.
Speaking to ANI, Rajendra Sharma, a wholesaler in Azadpur Mandi said, "The demand is exceeding the supply. Heavy rainfall in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, and Rajasthan has resulted in an increase of onion prices in Delhi."
"In the past seven days, the wholesale price of onion's different varieties ranges from Rs 25 to Rs 47," Sharma said.
In Patna, the retail price of onion has also shot up to Rs 60. The traders are also blaming heavy rainfall in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh for their predicament.
"Two days ago, the wholesale rate of onion was Rs 38 per kilogram and now it is Rs 48-50 because of low supply," said Ranjit Kumar, a wholesale trader in Patna.
"The market may normalise in the coming days of Navratri and Chhath puja where there is a decline in demand but as of now, the price of onion continues to increase. The wholesale price may rise up to Rs 55-60 per kilogram in the coming days," Kumar added.
Kumar further demanded that the government should reduce export in order to stabilise market prices.
With prices of onions seeing a surge for the past few weeks, the Union government had imposed a minimum export price of USD 85 per metric ton last week.
The move is expected to curb onion exports and bring down the price in the domestic market. (ANI)