New Delhi: In an effort to curb rising onion prices ahead of the festive season, the government will be transporting 1,600 tonnes of buffer stock via railways from Maharashtra to Delhi. This marks the first instance of using rail transport for onions, according to Consumer Affairs Secretary Nidhi Khare, who made the announcement on Thursday. The special train, called 'Kanda Express', will depart from Lasalgaon Railway Station in Maharashtra and arrive at Delhi's Kishanganj Railway Station on October 20.

The government hopes that this large-scale transportation will help stabilize prices in the Delhi-NCR region, where buffer stock onions are currently being sold at a subsidized rate of Rs 35 per kg. Retail prices in various cities are currently as high as Rs 75 per kg. "This rail transport initiative marks a historic first," said Khare, who also mentioned that similar measures will soon be implemented for Lucknow, Varanasi, and northeastern states like Assam, Nagaland, and Manipur.

In addition to this, the government is in discussions with Concord for using sealed container transport to minimize damage to the onions during transit. The buffer stock onions will be auctioned at prevailing market rates to facilitate wholesale market intervention.

Explaining the rationale behind the decision, the Secretary stated that transporting one rake (the equivalent of 56 trucks) by rail from Nasik to Delhi costs Rs 70.20 lakh, compared to Rs 84 lakh by road, resulting in savings of Rs 13.80 lakh per rake. She emphasized that this approach is both cost-effective and efficient.

Since September 5, the government has been selling buffer stock onions at subsidized rates through various channels such as mobile vans, NCCF and NAFED outlets, e-commerce platforms, Mother Dairy’s Safal outlets, and Kendriya Bhandar stores. Ahead of Diwali, the number of mobile vans will be increased from 600 to 1,000 to further strengthen retail interventions.

Out of the 4.7 lakh tonnes of buffer stock, 91,960 tonnes have been allocated to NCCF and NAFED, while 86,000 tonnes have already been dispatched to states including Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Goa, Rajasthan, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and Manipur, according to the Secretary. With these measures and the anticipated fresh crop arrivals from Maharashtra, the government is optimistic that onion prices will stabilize. The average purchase price of buffer stock onions stands at Rs 28 per kg.

Though export prices for onions have remained stable, the government noted that quantities are being controlled despite a slight increase in exports following the removal of the minimum export price and the reduction of duty from 40 per cent to 20 per cent.

The media briefing was also attended by NCCF Managing Director Anice Joseph Chandra, Joint Secretary in the Consumer Affairs Ministry Anupam Mishra, and other key officials. PTI