MADURAI: Residents in the Madurai district have urged for an increased supply of onions, priced at Rs 35 per kg, at PDS shops. They alleged that the shipment received on September 3 was sold out within a day.
Speaking to TNIE, M Mathivannan, a resident said, “The rising price of onions continues to concern residents, especially after onions were available for Rs 35/kg on September 3 at PDS shops. All cardholders in areas such as Azhagar Kovil Road, TVS Nagar, Palanganatham, and Viraganoor flocked to the PDS shops to buy onions.”
SP Perumal from Melur said, “We were greatly surprised by the arrival of onions in the first week of September, when the prices were hovering around 100 per kg. As a result, all cardholders rushed to PDS shops to purchase their allocations. However, during distribution, some discovered that the onions were decayed. We are requesting more allocations for every shop in Madurai, as the price of onions remains around Rs 80 per kg in the district.”
Speaking to TNIE, a top official from the District Cooperative Department said, “We recognise the significant demand from consumers. In the first phase, we received 61 tonnes, which were allocated to PDS shops in urban areas and the surrounding municipalities of Madurai, Melur, Thirumangalam, and Usilampatti taluk.
Recently, a fresh shipment of 30 tonnes of onions arrived on Friday and is now being distributed to 400 PDS shops in rural parts of Madurai district. An additional 30 tonnes is expected to arrive in a few days for distribution to the urban PDS shops.”
