CCTVs, ID cards, finger marking: Costly onions get Z-plus security at markets

With onion prices hitting the sky, the humble tuber is increasingly becoming a precious possession, one to be zealously guarded. At farmer markets in Hyderabad, people have to wait in long queues with identity cards with tight security and CCTV surveillance for getting their onions, according to a Hindustan Times report. The traders also have their finger inked after completing the transaction, according to the HT report. [caption id=“attachment_2406650” align=“alignleft” width=“380” class=" “]  Representational image. Image courtesy: PTI[/caption] The government has good reason to be cautious. In neighbouring Maharashtra, there have been two cases of large-scale onion thefts in a matter of days, with onion stashes as large as 2000 kg and 700 kg being stolen. At Vishakhapatnam, the district authorities have decided to limit the sale of subsidized onion to only one kilogram to one ration card holder in a day. As a large number of people thronged markets in the city, the administration was unable to open enough counters considering the rush, the New Indian Express reported. The state governments of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana began the sale of subsidized onions as a response to the steep increase in prices. At Kolkata, too, government-run stalls are selling onions at Rs 50 a kilogram, with a maximum limit of 500 grams for one customer. The move comes as retail prices have touched Rs 80 per kilograms in the city, as mentioned in the HT report. The Indian Express has reported that the government appears to be particularly nervous on this front because of the upcoming Bihar elections, and has increased the minimum export price to $700 per tonne.  It’s also buying onions from abroad. According to the report, about 50 containers of onions from Egypt will arrive in Mumbai by the end of the month and 18 trucks have arrived in Delhi from Afghanistan.