The price of onion, which has hit the roof, will come down next month once the stock rolls out from major onion growing places in the State, Horticulture Department Principal Secretary M K Shankarlinge Gowda said.
He told reporters here on Wednesday onion is grown in 1.29 lakh hectares in the State and production is around 2.5 lakh metric tonnes.
While onion is grown in many districts of North Karnataka during kharif season, it is grown in rabi season in the neighbouring Maharasthra. The onion grown in the State starts arriving in markets from October. But by that time, all the markets would be flooded with onion from Maharashtra. Naturally, due to short stock, the rates of onion grown in Maharashtra would be higher.
“I am optimistic that the rates will come down from next month once our crop hits the markets,” he said.
Gowda said during the corresponding period of last year, the rates of onion had hit the rock bottom with `600 per quintal. Now, it is around `4,500 per quintal. In fact, farmers of Maharashtra are making more money than their Karanataka counterparts. The demand for Maharashtra onions is more as they are completely dry. The Karnataka onions contain a lot of moisture and their shelf life is very short.
In order to ensure remunerative prices for Karnataka farmers, the department is exploring the possibility of prolonging the onion season from the current kharif to the rabi season so that the produce enters the market along with the Maharashtra crop. This will not only helps Karnataka farmers but also stabilise the price in the market.
Govt to Bail Out Farmers
Horticultural crops worth around `2,000 crore were lost due to drought, floods and pest attacks in the last two to three years and the State government is trying to compensate the affected farmers, Gowda said.
Gowda told reporters here that coconut crop worth `600 crore was lost. The loss of arecanut crop was around `789 crore.