India extends onion export ban till further orders

New Delhi: India has extended the export ban on onion till further orders, the government said. Earlier, onion exports were prohibited till March 31 this year.

“Export prohibition on export of onions valid till 31st March 2024, is extended until further orders,” the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) said in a notification.

India exported onions worth $431.78 million in April-January FY24 with $187.5 million shipped to Bangladesh and $48.12 million to Sri Lanka.

In December last year, the government prohibited the export of onions till March 31, 2024 but allowed their shipments based on permission granted by the central government to other countries on the request of other countries.

Earlier this month, the government had permitted the export of 50,000 tonnes of onions to Bangladesh and 14,400 tonnes to the UAE through the National Cooperative Exports Limited.

To check the soaring price of onion, the government imposed a minimum export price of $800 per tonne on October 28 till December 31, 2023. In August last year, India imposed a 40% duty on the export of onions to improve supplies of the staple vegetable in the domestic market until December 31, 2023.