Centre to Sell Subsidised Onions at Rs 35 per Kg in Delhi
The central government will begin selling onions at a subsidised rate of Rs 35 per kilogram across Delhi from Thursday to rein in soaring retail prices. Union Food Minister Pralhad Joshi is scheduled to inaugurate the subsidised retail sales, which will draw from the Centre's buffer stock to provide immediate relief to consumers facing market rates of Rs 55 per kg in the capital.
The subsidised produce will be distributed through retail networks managed by the National Cooperative Consumers' Federation of India (NCCF), the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (Nafed), and Kendriya Bhandar. Following the launch in Delhi, the sale of discounted onions will be expanded across the National Capital Region by the weekend.
To ensure wide accessibility, NCCF plans to sell onions through 100 Kendriya Bhandar stores and is in discussions with Mother Dairy to supply stocks through its 300 retail outlets. NCCF is also deploying mobile vans across the city, starting with 15 vehicles on Thursday and scaling up to 40 vans from Friday. Nafed will also retail onions across Delhi and other regional centres.
To expedite supply to the capital, bulk consignments are being transported directly from Nashik in Maharashtra via dedicated railway rakes named "Kanda Express". The first rake carrying 800 tonnes of onions is en route to Delhi, while NCCF is moving a 400-tonne consignment on the service.
The market intervention comes after a sharp surge in onion prices over the past month. In Delhi, retail prices touched Rs 55 per kg, compared to Rs 33 per kg recorded during the same period last year. Nationwide, the average retail price rose more than 28% to Rs 44.72 per kg on August 25 from Rs 34.80 per kg on July 25, marking a 56% increase compared to Rs 28.67 per kg a year ago.
Officials attributed the price increase to seasonal trends typical between August and September, driven by festive demand, weather disruptions, and supply-chain movements. The government maintained that overall availability remains sufficient to meet domestic requirements in the coming months, with total onion production estimated at 307.37 lakh tonnes for 2025-26.
