Ban on hoarding onions beyond ceiling extended by one year

In a bid to contain price rise of onions, the Indian Government extended the ban on holding its stock beyond permissible limit by one year.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, took the decision, which empowers states to impose stock limits on traders for holding onion and ban hoarding beyond the set limit.

"The CCEA today approved the stock holding limit order on onion by another year. This will enable state governments take effective de-hoarding measures under the Essential Commodities Act (ECA), 1955," sources told news agency PTI.

The direction comes in wake of rising prices of onions in wholesale and retail markets. The prices are increasing due to sluggish supply of good quality onions.

Also, to curb spike in onion prices in upcoming days due to supply shortage, the government has already increased the minimum export price of the commodity to $425 per tonne and is also planning to import some quantities of onions to boost domestic availability, reported PTI.

Apart from onions, pulses, edible oils, oilseeds, rice and paddy also come under the ambit of stock holding limits order.

As per the data provided by the Government, India's onion production is estimated to have declined to 189.23 lakh tonnes in the 2014-15 crop year, as against 194 lakh tonnes in the previous year.

(Image: Indiatimes)