Onion farmers in Telangana face severe losses as wholesale prices fall below production costs. Despite bumper output and high retail prices, smallholders struggle with mounting debts, transport costs, and no minimum support price, prompting urgent calls for government intervention.
There has been a month-on-month rise in cost of a typical veg as well as non-veg thali or a meal in November largely due to soaring onion and tomato prices, a domestic rating agency said in a report on Wednesday.
Onion prices have increased before Diwali and housewives are upset over this. The government makes efforts to control inflation only when elections are held, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said
According to the onion traders, the onions were priced at Rs 25-30 per kg before Navratri which have gone up to Rs 55-60 per kg in three days and these are being sold at Rs 65-70 per kg in the markets
Onions are being sold at Rs 17 to Rs 21 per kg online, while in retail and grocery shops, the prices are between Rs 16 to Rs 25 per kg, depending on the size and quality of the onions
The price of onions and other vegetables has increased because the supply chain from the farms was severely affected due to rains. Many customers are buying a smaller quantity of onions than earlier.
