New Delhi: The government on Wednesday relaxed import norms till December 15 to facilitate the early shipment of onion to boost the domestic supply and check the retail prices of the key kitchen staple.
The Union Consumer Affairs Ministry, in a statement, said it will also offload more onion from its buffer stock in the open market to contain price rise.
An estimated Kharif crop of 37 lakh tonne is likely to start arriving in the Mandis that will give reprieve to the rising prices, it added.
According to the ministry, a sharp spike in onion prices in the past 10 days by Rs 11.56/kg has taken the all-India retail price of the commodity to Rs 51.95/kg, which was 12.13 per cent higher than the last year's price of Rs 46.33/kg.
The retail price of onion has shown a marked increase from August-end 2020, though the price level was below that of last year till October 18, it said.
To facilitate import of onion, the ministry said, "the government has on October 21 relaxed the conditions for fumigation and additional declaration on Phytosanitary Certificate (PSC) under the Plant Quarantine Order (PQ), 2003 for import up to December 15, 2020".
The Indian High Commissions have been instructed in the relevant countries to contact the traders to push for greater onion imports to the country.
Such consignments of imported onions, which arrive at Indian ports without fumigation and endorsement to that effect on the PSC, would be fumigated in India by the importer through an accredited treatment provider.
If Stem and Bulbs nematode (Ditylenchus Dipsaci) or onion maggot (Hylimia Antiqua) is detected it would be eliminated through fumigation and the consignments to be released with no additional inspection fee.
"An undertaking will be obtained from the importers that the onion will be used only for consumption and not for propagation," the ministry said.
Such consignments of onions for consumption will not be subjected to four times an additional inspection fee on account of non-compliance of conditions of import under the PQ order, 2003, it added.