Onion prices have skyrocketed owing to incessant rains in the district. A significant number of onions were spoilt following the rain. This coupled with a lesser yield this year, has led to an increase in its price, which is currently being sold upwards of ₹60 a kg.
Both the consumers and the farmers are disheartened. While the consumers are concerned about the sharp increase in prices, the farmers are worried about the lack of proper infrastructure to store the produce.
A farmer told The Hindu that there was an immediate necessity to construct better storage facilities so that the onions were not spoilt. “Dampness spoils onions. One spoilt onion has the potential to spoil numerous more,” the farmer said.
Talking about the increase in prices, former market yard chairman Purushottam Reddy said the prices were expected to be high in the next two months. “The crops in Maharashtra were also destroyed due to rain. So, there may be an acute shortage of onions,” he added. Moreover, Mr. Reddy claims that there was a chance that the prices could go up to ₹80 per kg depending on the supply.