Onion exporters seek continuation of government incentive into the next fiscal year.

PUNE: India’s onion exporters are seeking the continuation of a federal incentive into the next fiscal year to prevent a price slump of the commodity of which there is a global glut. 

With the ongoing rabi (winter-sown crop) harvest at home also expected to be a record, onion traders are seeking the government incentive that is due to lapse on March 31. 

"The 5% benefit under the Merchandise Exports from India Scheme (MEIS) has helped boost the exports. Extending the benefit beyond March 31, will help to support prices," said Danish Shah, an onion exporter from Maharashtra. 

The earlier record of exports was of 18.73 lakh tonne in 2009-10. The country has already exported 24 lakh tonne onions, worth Rs 3,386 crore, in 2016-17. 

"Good weather conditions ensured production of quality onions," said Ajit Shah, a Mumbai-based trader and exporter. The current wholesale prices at the Lasalgaon APMC in Maharashtra are about 30% to 50% lower than the prices in the corresponding period of the previous year. 

Traders are confident that even if exports continue, India will have enough onions to meet its domestic demand during the lean monsoon months, when onions are available only from the stored stocks. “We will have sufficient stocks of the bulb to last until October,” said Danish Shah. 

With a window of one more month available before competition catches up from China or Egypt, Indian exporters are confident of shipping out good volumes in March and April. Although onion prices have declined by about 20% in March from February, traders expect that exports will cushion the fall in prices.