The Centre enhanced the buffer stock of onions from three lakh metric tonnes (LMT) to five LMT on Sunday. The National Cooperative Consumers’ Federation of India Limited (NCCF) will sell onions at retail price of ₹ 25 per kilogram from Monday.
The Centre, on Saturday, imposed 40% duty on export of onions. “The measures taken by the Government such as procurement for the buffer, targeted release of stocks and imposition of export duty will benefit farmers and consumers by assuring remunerative prices to onion farmers while ensuring continuous availability to consumers at affordable prices.” the Union Consumer Affairs Department said in a release.
The Department termed the move to enhance the stocks as unprecedented and said it has directed NCCF and National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd.(NAFED) to procure one lakh tonne each to achieve the additional procurement target alongside calibrated disposal of the procured stocks in major consumption centres.
