PANAJI
Onion prices have surged sharply across Goa, with retail rates touching Rs 65 to Rs 80 per kg, depending on their quality, leaving consumers feeling the pinch.
Retailers in the Panaji market said onions that were selling for Rs 40-45 per kg just a few days ago have now climbed to Rs 70-75 per kg.
Traders attributed the sudden spike to uncertainty in the demand-supply situation at the wholesale mandis in Belagavi, one of Goa’s key sources of onion supply.
“The arrivals are irregular and supplies are limited. That has pushed up prices at the wholesale level, which is reflected in retail rates,” a trader in Panaji said.
Amid the price rise, the Goa Horticulture Development Corporation (GHDC) has stepped in to provide some relief. The corporation is selling onions through its outlets across the State at Rs 57 per kg, significantly below prevailing open market rates.
Director of Agriculture Chandrahas Naik Desai, who also holds charge of the GHDC, said the shortage in Belagavi could be due to the gap between the first and second onion crops, a period when prices typically fluctuate.
“The second crop has started arriving in the mandis, but the flow is only a trickle at present,” Desai said.
He expressed hope that prices would ease once arrivals increase. “When supplies from farms to the mandis pick up, the market is expected to stabilise and rates should come down,” he added.
