Onions Make Indians Go Extra Teary: Rising Costs of Veggie Instigate Meme Fest

Onion prices have soared in several Indian states after crops were damaged due to rainfall in various parts of the country.

The remaining produce is failing to meet demand, as a result of which onion prices are skyrocketing in the country.

While usually the price of a kilo of onions ranges from INR 40 - INR 70 ($0.54-$1 approx.), the rates have currently surged up to INR 100-INR 120 ($1.36-$1.63).

The prices are directly impacting poorer sections of society, while also adding to the expenses of small and medium-sized restaurants that require a substantial amount of onion for preparing their delicacies.

Using humour as a defence mechanism, Indian netizens are highlighting the issue of surging onion prices on social media by posting hilarious memes along with the hashtag #OnionPrice.

​The Lasalgaon wholesale agricultural produce market located in Maharashtra’s Nashik district makes for the largest wholesale onion market in India. 

Nevertheless, the government has started taking steps to curb the rising prices as demand may surge exponentially due to the festive season in India. The Narendra Modi government relaxed the import rules on Wednesday to increase the availability of onion across the country. 

"Indian High Commissions have been instructed in the relevant countries to contact the traders for pushing for greater imports of onions to the country… Such consignments of imported onions which arrive in Indian port without fumigation and endorsement to that effect on the Phytosanitary Certificate, would be fumigated in India by the importer through an accredited treatment provider", the order issued by the Indian Commerce Ministry on Wednesday reads. 

On 14 September, the Modi government announced a ban on onion export “to ensure availability to domestic consumers at reasonable rates during the lean season before the kharif onion arrival”.