Onion prices to be high in Diwali: Heavy rains, damaged crops, delayed harvest

Onions will remain expensive through Diwali due to incessant rainfall in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh which damaged crops and delayed harvests by 10 to 15 days, according to an Economic Times report.
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The retail prices of onions are currently at ₹60-80/kg, while the wholesale prices in Nashik have been in the range of ₹45-50/kg for more than a month.
The rising prices of onions, tomatoes and cooking oils, were what led September 2024 inflation figures to hit a nine-month high of 5.49% and this trend may continue in October as well, according to the report.
This came after inflation had eased to a five-year low of 3.65% in August.
The food inflation separately increased from 5.66% in August to 9.24% in September.
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“The harvest of the kharif onions would be delayed in the areas that have been getting rainfall, which could keep the onion prices firm for at least two to three weeks,” the report quoted Vikash Singh, an onion exporter from Maharashtra as saying.
In response, the government has started retail sales of onions from its buffer stock to try control the prices, even using the ‘kanda train’ to transport onions from Nashik to Delhi to reduce the transport cost and increase supplies in north India, according to the report.
Its not just with vegetables. Even edible oil prices rose in September for the first time due to an increase in import duty since India imports almost 60% of its cooking oil, with palm oil having the highest share and its prices also surging globally.
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