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Panaji: The country has been left teary-eyed with onion prices recorded the highest price in Panaji on Thursday. The vegetable touched Rs 165 per kg in some parts of the country on Thursday.
The government is now banking on imports from neighbouring countries including Egypt, Turkey and Afghanistan and is expecting to import at least 35,000 tonnes of onions from next week.
As per reports, the union government will be exporting 6090 tonnes of onions from Egypt and another 11,000 tonnes from Turkey. Another 4,000 tonnes will arrive from Turkey by mid-January. In addition to these, three more tenders of 5,000 tonnes each have been put forward.
As Mandis across the country wore an unappealing look, the Finance Minister on Thursday became the talk of the internet after she revealed her food preferences and her family diet in the Parliament. The Finance minister on being asked by another MP if she an onion-eater. Her surprising reply ended up drawing laughter from her colleagues who were present in the Lower House.
Sitharaman also mentioned some of the measures undertaken by the government to tackle the skyrocketing price of onions. The minister said the government has taken steps to ban exports, the imposition of stock limit, import and transfer of onion from surplus to deficit area.
While the price of onions has crossed 100 per kg because of crisis, the minister informed that the decreasing area of cultivation has lead to a shortfall in production apart from structural issues related to storage.
Meanwhile, a group of ministers under Union home minister Amit Shah reviewed the situation of crisis because of a nearly 26% decline in production during this season.
As per different sources, that the crisis can only be relieved; the imports lined up from the three countries won’t meet the current demand.