Govt to offload 50,000 tonnes of onions from buffer stock to sustain prices
The government will offload about 50,000 tonnes of onions from its buffer stocks to a few cities like Delhi and Guwahati, where retail prices are a little higher than the all-India average rates.
To stabilise onion prices, the Centre is maintaining a buffer stock of 2.5 lakh tonnes of onion.
Sources said that the department of consumer affairs will sell 50,000 tonnes of onions to cities like Delhi and Guwahati from its buffer stocks.
There are many cities where prices are higher than the all-India average rates, they added.
The all-India average prices of onions stood at Rs 26 per kg on Tuesday.
As the shelf life of onions is less, the department has written to all states to place orders if they need onions, the sources said. The Centre is offering onions at around Rs 18 per kg.
The department is also exploring how to improve the shelf life of onions through the radiation process, they added.
Onion production in 2020-21 was 266.41 lakh tonnes and consumption was 160.50 lakh ...