Onion export ban to continue till March 31 as Centre remains focused on price, availability

The government said on Tuesday that restrictions on onion exports will remain in place until the originally scheduled deadline of March 31, 2024, as it seeks to maintain the prices and the domestic availability of the kitchen staple at apt levels. The Centre had banned onion exports till March 31 on December 8, 2023.

"Ban on onion exports has not been lifted. It is in force and there is no change in the status," Consumer Affairs Secretary Rohit Kumar Singh told news agency Press Trust of India. The government's supreme priority is to ensure enough domestic availability of onion at reasonable prices to consumers, he said.

Ahead of general elections, the ban is unlikely to be lifted even after March 31 as rabi (winter) onion production is expected to be lower due to less coverage of the area especially in Maharashtra, PTI reported citing sources.

On indications that the commodity's export embargo will be lifted, modal wholesale onion prices in Lasalgoan, the country's largest wholesale onion market, rose 40.62 per cent to Rs 1,800 per quintal on February 19, up from Rs 1,280 per quintal on February 17.

Meanwhile, onion output was expected to reach 22.7 million tonnes during the rabi season in 2023.

In the following days, Agriculture Ministry experts will examine rabi onion coverage in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, and Gujarat, three significant growing states. Meanwhile, exports of onions to friendly nations are permitted on a case-by-case basis, with clearance from the inter-ministerial committee.

Why did govt put onion under prohibition?

The government made the decision based on the delay in Kharif's arrival, the quantity of onion shipped, and the worldwide scenario, including trade and non-trade restrictions imposed by major suppliers like Turkey, Egypt, and Iran. To guarantee that farmers are not negatively impacted, the government is constantly acquiring onions from farmers through the Price Stabilisation Fund.

The government is also closely monitoring onion crop availability and prices to take appropriate action in the best interests of both consumers and farmers. The procurement of onions from farmers under the Price Stabilisation programme will continue to provide remunerative pricing for farmers, and both wholesale and retail interventions will continue in high-price marketplaces to make onions available to consumers at reasonable costs.

On October 29, 2023, the government established a minimum export price (MEP) of USD 800 per tonne for onion exports while also disposing of onion buffer stock. While the MEP was successful in limiting onion exports, large quantities remained to be exported because to the global circumstances and the delayed arrival of the kharif crop.

With inputs from agencies