| Date: |
07-01-2011 |
| Subject: |
Rethink Ban On Onion Exports, India to Pakistan |
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NEW DELHI: The government on Thursday termed as unfortunate Pakistan’s decision to ban the export of onion to India via the land route. It said it has urged Islamabad to review its decision.
“We have urged them (the authorities in Pakistan) that the contracted quantities, which were to come via the land route, should be released," Commerce Minister Anand Sharma said.
Pakistan had on Wednesday stopped 300 trucks carrying the root vegetable to India via the Wagah border crossing after complaints that exports to India had caused a sharp spurt in the vegetable’s prices in Pakistan. The trucks were expected to enter Amritsar in Punjab by Thursday noon and reach Delhi by Friday , an official said.
The imported onions were meant to be distributed at subsidies rate through the government-owned Kendriya Bhandars . Exports via sea are allowed but this pushes up the landed cost of onion by Rs 20,000 per 10,000 kg. The government had asked the State Trading Corporation and the Public Enterprises Company to import 300 tonne and 1,000 tonne of onion, respectively, from Pakistan to check skyrocketing prices of the vegetable in the domestic markets. The price of onion had touched Rs 85 a kg in some retail markets in December. It has since eased to Rs 50-70 a kg.
On Thursday, the Competition Commission of India ordered an investigation into reports that some traders had formed a cartel to jack up onion prices. Chief Economic Adviser Kaushik Basu had earlier said that hoarding and speculation could have played a role in the sharp rice of onion prices.
According to agriculture analyst Madan Diwan , climate change and lack of forward planning were also responsible for a spurt in onion prices.
“With rapid climate change and poor forward planning, this sort of abrupt shooting up in prices is likely more often now,” Diwan said. “Climate change impacts short term crops like vegetables sharply, showing up in your grocery bills sooner than for foodgrains.”
Source : economictimes.indiatimes.com
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