Govt allows export of 1 lakh tonnes of onion to six nations on govt-to-govt basis; NCEL buying the bulbs
Soon after allowing export of 2,000 tonnes of white onion, the Union government on Saturday announced its decision to permit shipments of an additional 99,150 tonnes of onion to six countries — Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, the UAE, Bahrain, and Mauritius. Despite the ban on onion exports since last year, the government has been allowing shipments of specific quantities in response to diplomatic requests.
The ban was imposed to ensure adequate domestic availability as kharif and rabi harvest in 2023-24 was lower. Opening exports assumes significance considering the reported discontent among growers over the continuing the ban on exports. The National Cooperative Exports Limited (NCEL) has been the nodal agency for export of all prohibited agri produce including onion, sugar and rice.
Earlier this month in separate orders, the government had allowed export of up to 2,000 tonnes of white onion to West Asia and some European countries. It had allowed dispatch of 20,000 tonnes to the UAE and 10,000 tonnes to Sri Lanka. With the latest announcement, the total quantity permitted so far in 2024-25 exceeds 1.30 lakh tonnes (lt).
A Consumer Affairs Ministry statement said that NCEL has been sourcing onion for exports through e-platform at L1 prices and supplying to the agency or agencies nominated by the government of the destination country at a negotiated rate on 100 per cent advance payment basis.
“The offer rate of NCEL to the buyers takes into account the prevailing prices in the destination, international and domestic markets. As the largest producer of onion, Maharashtra is the major supplier to NCEL for export,” it said.
RABI OUTPUT TO DIP
The Ministry said that the Rabi procurement target for the onion buffer, under the Price Stabilisation Fund (PSF), has been fixed at 5 lakh tonnes this year. Central
agencies such as NCCF and Nafed are tying up local agencies such as FPOs/ FPCs/PACs to support the procurement, storage and farmers registration to begin buying of any store-worthy onion, the government said.
A high level Central team had visited Nashik and Ahmednagar in Maharashtra on April 11-13 to create awareness among farmers, FPOs/FPCs and PACs about the procurement of onion for buffer stock.
Rabi onion production is seen dipping 18 per cent to 193 lakh tonnes in 2023-24 (July-June) against 236 lakh tonnes year ago. Accounting for up to 75 per cent of annual production, Rabi onion is critical for domestic availability. Also, the Rabi crop has better shelf-life compared to Kharif onion and can be last till December.