The price of onion in the State has doubled in the last few days though the Civil Supplies and Consumer Welfare Department has taken some damage control measures.
The onion price which was Rs 12 to Rs 15 per kg ten days back, jumped to Rs 30 on Monday in the main markets in the twin city, Chhatra Bazaar in Cuttack and the Unit-1 daily market in Bhubaneswar.
Earlier, the Government had ordered that onion be sold with a profit of Re 1 per kg above the wholesale price in the State. Civil Supplies Department officials had conducted raids on a number of godowns in different parts of the State. Onion was sold at Rs 17 to Rs 18 in the Maitri fair price shops in Cuttack and Bhubaneswar, but it seems these measures had no impact.
Odisha produces 1 lakh tonnes of onion annually, but there is a requirement of 4 lakh tonnes, for which the State is dependent on import of onion from Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh. Due to floods in Maharashtra, onion supplies to the State have been affected.
Besides, the production in Andhra Pradesh has not been good this year. The shortage of cold storage facilities in Odisha have also added to the woes. This has led to the apprehensions that onion prices would reach Rs 50 soon, and this trend is expected to continue till November.