Delhi govt bans sale of onions to 'outsiders' to keep prices under check

Onions is a very sensitive issue in the national Capital, nothing less than national security.

Any doubting Thomas can confirm it with the Bharatiya Janata Party, which had to lose its government over soaring prices of the edible kitchen bulb in 1998.

And the Congress is not ready to take any chances.

The state government met at a high-level meeting to discuss the issue yesterday. It was decided to ban the sale to areas outside the city as well as opening dedicated outlets across the city.

Prices of onion, which in the retail market during the last week was Rs 15 per kg, has gone up to Rs 25 to Rs 30 per kg. According to wholesale traders in the Capital, onion is supplied to the city mainly from Nashik in Maharashtra and other South Indian states, but the flood situation there has severely affected the inflow of the vegetable. "The prices are high because floods in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka have destroyed the crops as well as affecting supplies," said a trader at Azadpur wholesale market.