Sky Rocketing Onion Prices Create Agony, Citizens Come Back With Sarcasm

The prices of onions in the Chittoor district touched Rs. 250 per kilogram today. While this is the price of medium variety, the third-grade variety- which has a chance of getting rotten- came up to Rs. 200 per kilogram.

The onion prices in some retail shops of Bengaluru and Ludhiana also surged up to Rs.200 per kilogram.

The supply of onions in Bengaluru alone has dropped by 50% in the month of November, due to the severe shortage of the crop.

The wholesale price of onions in Bengaluru is around Rs 5,500 – Rs 14,000 per quintal. The Karnataka’s onion produce comes up to 20.19 lakh metric tonnes. In November, Karnataka markets received only 60-70 quintals of onion a day, an estimated fall of 50%

The drastic damage to the onion crops due to heavy rains has resulted in a shortage of onions all across the country. In the aftermath, onions have gone missing from menu cards ranging from street food to famous restaurants and households in the country.

There are bizarre incidents and subtle protests taking place across the nation mocking the government on the crisis.

The Finance Minister became a target of trolls on social media with #SayItLikeNirmalaTai it trending on Twitter.

What Happened to BSNL?
My family doesn't use BSNL. We use Jio. So i sold it.#SayItLikeNirmalaTai pic.twitter.com/lH7ALPxJJ9

— Akshara S Nair (@AksharaSNair1) December 5, 2019

There are memes about Onion Bank Of India replacing Union Bank Of India going viral.

Bhagwan kare aap sabke bhi Account Onion bank of india main khule ����

शुभरात्री
राधे राधे pic.twitter.com/St75eNg75C

— Shikha Mishra�� (@ShikhaM73528512) December 7, 2019

Congress members on December 5, were seen selling onions and protesting against the hike in front of parliament.

P Chidambaram joins Congress's protest at Parliament premises over rising onion prices – India News https://t.co/WVqFpbbTEq

— Robin-Cong, RSS stay away (@RoPJJonesRobin1) December 5, 2019

There have been a series of onion theft reported across the country. In a span of one week, four cases of theft were registered in Gadag, Gajendragad, and Ron of Karnataka, The New Indian Express reported. In Bengaluru, five men were held for onion theft by staging an accident, on December 8.

In Tamil Nadu, Cuddalore, a couple got an onion bouquet at their wedding.

Amid Rising Prices, Tamil Nadu Couple Gets Bouquet Of Onion At Wedding https://t.co/Ch9GaElDIc

— NDTV News feed (@ndtvfeed) December 9, 2019

In West Bengal, thieves stole onions worth Rs. 50,000 and left the cash box untouched.

No Wonder Men are choosing
ONION RINGS
over
Diamond Rings ��
to propose their Lady Love��������

Thieves in West Bengal steal onion instead of cash via @htTweets https://t.co/HVJJ1ixW0b

— Dolan Mukherjee (@DolanMukherjee) November 30, 2019

People in Bihar offered prayers to onions.

People in Bihar offered prayers to onions so as to protest against the price rise.https://t.co/33xX4M7tfM

— Kevin (@KevinKnowsNow) December 3, 2019

In Varanasi, the Samajwadi party’s youth started to give onions on loans by mortgaging Aadhar Cards in their shops.

In a unique protest to highlight the high price of onions, workers of Samajwadi Party's youth wing are giving onions on loan by keeping… https://t.co/W9iAysm8ap

— Thuppilikkat (@mohamedparappur) December 1, 2019

Several opposition leaders across the nation wore onion garlands.

#AamAadmiParty MPs protest against the hike in prices of onion.https://t.co/Vxdz0d9Zxb

— India Today (@IndiaToday) December 3, 2019

Bihar cooperative officers sold onions by wearing helmets, to protect themselves from a possible stampede.

Wow — "Employees of Bihar State Cooperative Marketing Union Limited (Biscomaun) were seen wearing helmets while selling onions at Patna and Ara to protect themselves from any possible public outrage on Saturday."#india #Bihar #OnionPricehttps://t.co/bGPlAtxiDK

— Ajay Verghese (@AjayVerghese) December 2, 2019

A few restaurants in Bengaluru removed ‘Onion Dosa’.

Some restaurants in and nearby Bengaluru have stopped serving Irulli Dosa (Onion Dosa), while others have cut down onion usage: All Karnataka Pradesh Hotel and Restaurant Owners Association president Chandrashekhar Hebbar to PTI #OnionCrisis

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) November 29, 2019

A lot of memes and mock videos were made on social media to bring about the government’s attention towards the crisis. They also asked for a Reserve Bank of Onions to declare onions as the new currency.

Reserve Bank of Onions,
A short video on New currency-
రూపాయలు బదులు ఉల్లిపాయలు . pic.twitter.com/C8XmUTKh1I

— Pawan Kalyan (@PawanKalyan) December 9, 2019

The prices of onions are expected to stay high until mid-January. However, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaraman said that the government is working towards this and is taking adequate measures to control onion prices.

Also Read: Why Onion Prices Continue To Sky Rocket Even When Farmers Are Selling At Low Cost