Bumper crop may make onion cheaper

After potato, yet another commodity is set to witness bumper harvest in Gujarat. Onion output in the state is set to surge by 55 per cent to 1.92 million tonne this year.

According to data available with the state agriculture department, onion output stood at 12.42 per cent in the last fiscal, which is likely to increase to 1.92 million tonnes in 2008-09.

"Gujarat brought around 80,200 hectares of land under onion cultivation in 2007-08, up 53 per cent over the previous year," state agriculture minister Dilip Sanghani informed the Assembly on Monday.

Expectations of higher production have already started impacting the prices. Currently, prices of Kathiyavad variety have come down to Rs 45 from Rs 75 per 20 kg. These were ruling above Rs 100 before December 2007, said a local trader.

Sanghani said prices of Kathiyavad onions, red onions and white onions were currently hovering around Rs 300 per quintal, Rs 375 per quintal and Rs 280 per quintal respectively.

Around 50 per cent of the onion output has already arrived in the market. Considering the plight of potato growers in the state, who suffered huge losses due to lower prices of the commodity following bumper production, there is demand that the state government also purchase onions from farmers.

However, Sanghani made it clear that currently prices of onion were above Market Intervention Scheme (MIS) norms.

"As of now, there is no plan to purchase onions as it was done in the case of potatoes. However, if the onion prices come down below MIS norms, the government will approach the Centre to purchase onions under MIS," he added.