KOCHI: The big onions are bringing tears to the eyes of buyers as the price has touched an all-time high of Rs 170 per kilogram in the state. In supermarkets of two districts — Ernakulam and Malappuram — large-sized big onions (white ones brought from Pune) were sold for Rs 170 per kilogram on Thursday.
In small vegetable shops, the same was sold for Rs 150 per kilogram. With Christmas season, when the demand for big onions normally surges, arriving, the chances of traders hoarding the stock cannot be ruled out.
Meanwhile, traders said the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) protests, which have erupted in the country, especially in the northern parts and Karnataka from where the major quantity of stocks arrive in Kerala, have adversely affected the transportation of big onions. The decline in the stock arrival has eventually resulted in the price hike.
“Due to transportation issues, we are not receiving a regular supply. If the transportation becomes normal, we will be able to bring in more stocks from Maharashtra, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu,” said NH Shameed, secretary, Ernakulam Market Merchant Association.
Only once has the price of onion crossed Rs 100 in Kerala, which was in June 2014, when it touched Rs 120 per kg.
However, the prices dropped and came back to Rs 30-40 mark soon after during that time. This is the first time that it has touched the Rs 150 mark.
Meanwhile, in border districts like Palakkad, the arrival of produce from Tamil Nadu and Karnataka has helped in reining in onion price.
The wholesale rate of large onions in the Palakkad vegetable market in Melamuri was Rs 115 to Rs 120 per kilogram, depending on the size.
“In the retail market, it was being sold for Rs 140 and Rs 150 per kilogram,” said P Gopalakrishnan, a wholesale vegetable dealer in Palakkad.
He said that onions arrived in the Palakkad market from Pune and Karnataka. However, due to the high price, only small quantities were arriving because of the low demand from consumers.