One man?s meat, after all, is another?s poison. Kitchens in Kerala have taken a harsh battering as NAFED eased its hand on the export price of onion. With the Centre trimming down MEP (Minimum Export Price) of onion by $175 per tonne, price of the edible bulb in the consumer-state furthest from producing centres slid up to alarming levels.
For Kerala consumer, the onion price blow comes amidst acute scarcity in essential items like rice and milk. Besides the tourism season-driven visitors influx, the Sabarimala pilgrimage season has jacked up food demand in the State.
At open market retail in Kerala, the price of onion ( small variety) is Rs 30 to Rs 32 per kilo and onion (big variety) is Rs 18 to 20 per kilo. In the state-run Supplyco outlets, prices are a tad lower, but stocks are not strong.
?Like the shortage of rice, the availability of onion at reasonable price will be addressed on war footing,? says C Divakaran, Kerala food minister.
Kerala government is in continuing parleys with Andhra Pradesh food minister N Raghuveera Reddy to arrange a smooth supply chain of rice and other groceries at fair prices.
Following the onion crop readied to be diverted for overseas trade, the flow of stocks to Kerala has fallen.
Market sources, however, blamed the North-centric regulatary policies for the alarming price trends in onion in South. They estimate the onion (big variety) price will shoot up higher in the coming days.