Prices won’t normalise for a month, say traders

The price of onions, which had hit a high of Rs50 a kg last week before settling at about Rs36-40 a kg, is likely to take a few weeks more before normalising.

“The price should come down to Rs10-15 a kg once the new yield arrives. But that will take around four to five more weeks. Till then, they are expected to cost about Rs35-50 per kg,” said Ashok Valunj, director of the Onion-Potato Traders Association, Vashi.

Heavy rains in Nashik are being blamed for the supply crunch. At the onset of the monsoon, when abundant precipitation helps the crop, the region received few showers.

From October, though, it received over 270mm of rain, against the long period average of 121.2mm, resulting in a rainfall surplus of 123% for the period.

Some observers also cite hoarding and forward trading as reasons for the crunch, which resulted in a rise in the price of onion.

“Supply of fresh onions from Nashik, Ahmednagar, Satara and Pune has gone down drastically,” said an official of the Agriculture Prod-uce Market Committee, Vashi.

“New yield will come in the market by the end of January. Till then, the price will not come down. Due to untimely rains, 50% onions produced and stored in godowns have gone waste,” said Valunj.