The government in Maharashtra is procuring onions at a significantly higher price than last year in preparation for the upcoming assembly polls. Onion prices skyrocketed in August last year, pushing food prices and overall inflation higher for a large part of 2023 and beginning of 2024 just before the country went in for Lok Sabha elections, causing worry for the government which was forced to eventually ban onion exports to curb rising domestic prices.
Harvesting onions usually takes place in the Rabi season, which runs from March to May, and in the Kharif and late Kharif seasons, which run from October to March. But between June and September, there is no harvesting, therefore buffer stockpiles of Rabi onions must be released to keep up with demand. In August of last year, the Ministry of Finance implemented a 40% export tariff in an effort to reduce exports due to rising prices.
Presentation- Dibyabharati Nayak
