Govt to sell onions at Rs 25 per kilo, Piyush Goyal says

The Central government will sell onions at Rs 25 per kilo to consumers, said minister of Consumer Affairs and Food Piyush Goyal on Tuesday.

"Onions were sold at Rs 25 per kilo at many centres yesterday. This process will be accelerated from today onwards. Areas suffering from high onion prices will get onions at Rs 25 per kilo through NAFED, NCCF," Goyal said.

"The farmers need not worry about anything, they can sell onions at a good price. Request them to not indulge in panic selling," Goyal added.


The central government has started the procurement of an additional 2 lakh tonne of onion from farmers in Maharashtra. The Finance Ministry through a notification on August 19 imposed the 40 per cent export duty on onions till December 31, 2023.


The announcement of the start of procurement was made after a meeting between Goyal and Maharashtra Agriculture Minister Dhananjay Munde in Delhi.

“The central government always works in the best interest of farmers and buys their produce from time to time… NCCF and NAFED on the direction of central government had procured 3 lakh tonne onions from various parts of Maharashtra, which in the process increased the prices. To create a balance between farmers and consumers, the government has imposed a 40 per cent export duty on onion. This is to ensure domestic availability,” Goyal told ANI.

"The two agricultural agencies – NCCF and NAFED -- have started procuring additional 2 lakh tonne of onion directly from farmers at Rs 2,410 per 100 kg in Maharashtra", Goyal said. “If need be, we are ready to procure more from other onion growing states,” he said.

The decision to impose export duty on onions for the first time ever is also aimed to curbing prices of the kitchen staple ahead of the festive season. In Delhi, retail prices of onions have touched nearly Rs 40 per kilogram, as per official data.

Between April 1 and August 4 this fiscal, 9.75 lakh tonne of onions have been exported from the country. The top three importing countries in value terms are Bangladesh, Malaysia and the UAE.

The central government had earlier decided it will maintain 3 lakh tonne of onions in the 2023-24 season as buffer stock. In 2022-23, the government maintained 2.51 lakh tonne onion as buffer stock. Buffer stock is maintained to meet any exigencies and for price stabilization, if rates go up significantly during the lean supply season.