Govt. taking all measures to curtail onion price rise: Thomas

New Delhi, Dec.23 (ANI): Expressing concern over the escalating prices of onions across the country, Minister of State for Food and Agriculture K.V. Thomas on Thursday said that the government is taking all possible measures to curtail the price rise.

Interacting with mediapersons on the sidelines of a seminar here, Thomas hoped that fresh stocks of onion, slated to arrive from Karnataka and Maharashtra to the markets in the next few weeks, would resolve the crisis.

Thomas further said he is 'not a magician', so he does not know when the spiked price of onion will come down.

"We also feel that maybe after another 15-20 days, the onions which would be coming to the market from states like Karnataka and Maharashtra will be better. I am not a magician, I do not know when they would come down. But we are taking all the steps so that the prices come down," he said.

One of the key measures that have been taken by the government in rectifying the anomaly is enforcing a ban on onion exports till January.

"The export of onion has been suspended till the January 15. If needed, we will further extend that time. The minimum export price of onion for the remaining period of December 2010, has been increased from 525 dollars a ton to 1,200 dollars," said Thomas.

The price of onions shot up to Rs 80 per kilogram in New Delhi on Monday, while at other places it had skyrocketed to as much as Rs 100.

The rate hike in the onion is attributed to shortage of stocks in the wholesale market.

A week ago, onions were being sold between Rs 30 and 45 per kilogram in retail markets. (ANI)