NEW DELHI: Rising onion prices in India pose a greater risk to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government than a recent spike of 700% in tomatoes, forcing authorities take fresh steps to contain food inflation before key polls.
India has imposed a 40% export tax on onions and plans to sell them locally at subsidized rates. The vegetable stands alongside tomatoes and potatoes as part of a trio of crops so crucial to Indian diets that past price spikes due to crop losses have prevented some ruling parties from returning to power. Consumers are more sensitive to onions — a vegetable that’s hard to be replaced with any other commodity in many local cuisines — than to tomatoes and potatoes.
The government faced fierce criticism after tomato prices rocketed as much as eight-fold following heavy rains in key growing areas. The cost of tomatoes has been falling, but a steady rise in onions put the authorities on high alert. The moves come as costs rise for many farm commodities, such as wheat and rice, because of poor weather.
