Delhi govt suggests setting up fund to control onion prices
NEW DELHI: With the spike in onion prices becoming an annual affair, the Delhi government on Wednesday proposed creating a special fund that could be used to provide the kitchen staple at cheaper rates.
The proposal to create a Price Stabilisation Fund (PSF) was put before the union minister of consumer affairs, food and public distribution system Ram Vilas Paswan on Wednesday. The Aam Aadmi Party government has suggested that both the Centre and the Delhi government contribute to the PSF.
“The Delhi government has requested the Centre to provide financial assistance under the Price Stabilisation Fund. If this gets approved then Delhi government will be able to provide onions at affordable rates through its public distribution system (PDS) outlets as and when necessary,” an official from the food and supplies department said.
Onion prices have spiralled to ₹75 a kilo against the usual rate of ₹25-₹30 a kilo due to limited supply. The government said that the rise in prices of onion is due to poor supply from Nashik in Maharashtra.
Delhi food and civil supplies minister Imran Hussain chaired a review meeting on Wednesday. He was told that four enforcement teams were making daily inspections of major markets to check hoarding.
“The teams have not reported hoarding to date. Considering the high renting cost of storage spaces in Delhi, possibilities of hoarding in the city are very less,” an official said.
The minister would convene a meeting on Thursday with officers of the development department, Delhi Agricultural Marketing Board and food and civil supplies department to ascertain the trends of wholesale prices and also quantity of arrivals in the local mandis of Delhi.