Monday (December 16): Not just onion, retail prices of potato and other vegetables have also shot up in the national capital today as recent winter rainfall has damaged some of the crops, according to traders.
For instance, wholesale rate of cabbage was quoting Rs 7-10/kg on Monday at Azadpur mandi, as against Rs 1.40-3/kg a year ago, cauliflower at Rs 8-22.50/kg as against Rs 5-10/kg in the previous year, while carrot at Rs 4-23/kg as against Rs 2-12/kg, and capsicum at Rs 12-22/kg as against Rs 6-12/kg in the said period, according to data from central government portal Agmarknet.
However in retail markets, the rates are much higher depending on the quality and locality. Onion is available at above Rs 100/kg, potato at Rs 35-40/kg and tomato at Rs 60/kg in retail markets of the national capital region. Prices of other vegetables like gobi, cabbage and spinach double the rates quoted in the wholesale mandis.
Some of the vegetable crops have been damaged and in some places, harvesting of onion and other crops has delayed due to water-logging in the farm fields, he said.
Currently, Delhi is getting the potato supply from neighbouring Punjab and Haryana, where the crop is damaged because of last week’s heavy rainfall. Similarly, harvesting of onion has been affected due to wet fields, he added.
Onion prices have skyrocketed as domestic production in Kharif and late-kharif seasons (summer-sown) is estimated to have declined by 22 per cent.
The government has been maintaining that it has taken all possible steps to rein in prices such as allowing imports, imposing a ban on exports and putting restrictions on quantities of onions to be stocked by retailers and wholesalers
