The probe initiated by fair trade watchdog Competition Commission of India (CCI) into the sharp fluctuations in onion prices may fail to prove the existence of any organised cartels operating in this sector, it was learnt.
The investigations covering major wholesale vegetable markets in the country have so far found no trace of such cartels, officials said. The CCI had asked its investigation wing to look into onion price patterns on January 7 after the prices shot up to a record level of Rs 80 per kg during the last week of December.
CCI officials said the inquiry will cover all aspects of onion trade to find whether clogging of distribution, drop in production or hoarding and cartelisation had led to the price increase. The watchdog's decision to conduct probe came at a time when the opposition was blaming the central government for failing to arrest the price of this essential commodity.
The probe signifies the role of competition law in curbing unethical and anticompetitive practices in the trade of agricultural produce, an official said.
