**Executive Summary**
This document is the answer provided by the Minister of State in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry to Unstarred Question No. 1571 in Lok Sabha on 09/12/2025. The question concerns onion export restrictions, farmer income loss, and the government's policy for ensuring price stability and fair remuneration for farmers. The document details the government's approach to monitoring, intervention, and support mechanisms for the onion trade.
**Key Points / Main Content**
* **Government Monitoring and Intervention:**
* The government continuously monitors onion availability, arrivals, buffer stock, and price trends.
* Calibrated and temporary trade policy measures (MEP, export duties, or temporary export restrictions) are imposed in the public interest when domestic supplies show stress.
* Measures are time-bound, transparent, and withdrawn once domestic availability stabilizes.
* **Farmer Support and Procurement:**
* The government actively procures onions through NAFED and NCCF during periods of price moderation to support farmers and prevent distress sales.
* **Onion Trade Policy Pillars:**
* *Dynamic Monitoring:* Continuous monitoring of acreage, arrivals, wholesale, and retail prices.
* *Evidence-Based Policy:* Temporary export interventions only during extraordinary domestic price spikes.
* *Immediate Reversal:* Restrictions are lifted as soon as domestic prices soften.
* *Strengthening Infrastructure:* Investments in storage, irradiation, packhouses, and logistics.
* **Government Measures:**
* *Creation of Onion Buffer:* An annual onion buffer is created under the Price Stabilisation Fund (PSF).
* *Procurement to Support Farmers:* Buffer procurement absorbs excess supply during peak arrival season.
* *Market Release to Protect Consumers:* The buffer is released through retail outlets, state governments, and e-commerce platforms.
* *Infrastructure Development:* Promotion of modern onion storage structures, scientific curing, grading, sorting facilities, and cold-chain infrastructure.
* *Export Facilitation:* Active encouragement of exports through improved logistics and market access support.
**Impact Analysis**
**Consumers**
* **Impact**
* Aim to protect low-income consumers from sharp retail price spikes.
* **Action Required**
* No direct action required.
**Farmers**
* **Impact**
* Affected by export restrictions.
* Benefit from government procurement and efforts to ensure remunerative prices.
* **Action Required**
* No direct action required.
**Exporters**
* **Impact**
* Affected by export restrictions and the immediate reversal policy.
* **Action Required**
* Monitor government policies and guidelines.
Key Entities Referenced
Ministry of Commerce and Industry: The primary ministry responsible for policies related to onion exports, as indicated in the document.
Onion Export Restrictions: The central issue addressed in the document, involving measures like export bans, minimum export prices, and duties on onions.
Price Stabilisation Fund (PSF): A fund used to create onion buffer stocks to stabilize prices, mentioned in the context of ensuring farmer-friendly prices.
NAFED and NCCF: Agencies involved in procuring onions for the buffer stock under the Price Stabilisation Fund.
DGFT: An agency whose website contains key export policy interventions for onions.
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1571
ANSWERED ON 09/12/2025
ONION EXPORT RESTRICTIONS AND FARMER INCOME LOSS
1571. MS. PRANITI SUSHILKUMAR SHINDE
ADV. GOWAAL KAGADA PADAVI
Will the Minister of COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY ¼okf.kT; ,oa m|ksx ea=h½ be pleased to
state:
(a) whether the Government is aware of the occasions when export bans, minimum
export prices or duties were imposed on onions and the reasons therefor during
the last five years;
(b) whether any assessment has been made of the income loss suffered by farmers in
Nandurbar, Solapur and Sangli due to these restrictions;
(c) whether the Government proposes a long-term and stable export policy for onions;
and
(d) if so, the details thereof including any buffer stock or incentive mechanism to
ensure price stability and fair farmer remuneration?
ANSWER
okf.kT; ,oa m|ksx ea=ky; esa jkT;ea=h ¼Jh ftfru izlkn½
THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY
(SHRI JITIN PRASADA)
(a) Yes, the Government continuously monitors the availability, arrivals, buffer stock
position and price trends of onions across the country. Whenever domestic supplies
have shown signs of stress, calibrated and temporary trade policy measures—such as
Minimum Export Price (MEP), export duties, or temporary export restrictions—have
been imposed solely in the public interest.
1These measures were necessary to protect consumers, especially low-income
households, during years when adverse weather conditions and lower arrivals led to
sharp spikes in retail prices. All such measures were time-bound, transparent and
withdrawn immediately once domestic availability stabilised.
At the same time, the Government has consistently facilitated exports whenever the
domestic situation permitted, thereby balancing remunerative prices for farmers with
affordability for consumers. Key export policy interventions for onions during the last few
years are available on the websites of DGFT and the Department of Revenue through
CBIC.
(b) It may be noted that market prices of agricultural commodities depend on multiple
factors, including arrivals, storage practices, traders’ behaviour, quality variations and
global price cycles. Therefore, any attempt to attribute price movements in specific
mandis exclusively to export policy actions would not be empirically accurate.
Further, during periods of price moderation, the Government has actively procured
onions through NAFED and NCCF to support farmers and prevent distress sales,
thereby ensuring remunerative returns.
(c) The Government follows a stable and predictable approach for the onion trade,
based on the following pillars:
Dynamic Monitoring: Continuous monitoring of acreage, arrivals, wholesale and
retail prices.
Evidence-Based Policy: Temporary export interventions only during
extraordinary circumstances of a domestic price spike.
Immediate Reversal: As soon as domestic prices soften, restrictions are lifted to
support farmers and exporters.
Strengthening Infrastructure: Large investments in storage, irradiation,
packhouses and logistics under NHB and other schemes.
This balanced framework ensures both price stability for consumers and market
opportunities for farmers, and has functioned effectively over the last several years.
(d) The Government has undertaken the following measures:
1. Creation of Onion Buffer: Under the Price Stabilisation Fund (PSF), the
Government annually creates a sizeable onion buffer. NAFED and NCCF
procure onions from producing states at market-driven and farmer-friendly
prices.
22. Procurement to Support Farmers: Buffer procurement helps in absorbing
excess supply during peak arrival season, preventing steep price crashes,
ensuring farmers receive remunerative prices, and guaranteeing assured
offtake when needed.
3. Market Release to Protect Consumers: The buffer is released through
retail outlets, state governments, and e-commerce platforms to moderate
retail prices whenever required.
4. Infrastructure Development: The Government is promoting modern onion
storage structures, scientific curing, grading and sorting facilities, cold-chain
infrastructure, and value-addition units to reduce post-harvest losses and
increase farmer incomes.
5. Export Facilitation: Whenever domestic availability is comfortable,
exports are actively encouraged through improved logistics, GI tagging and
branding initiatives, and market access support through APEDA.
***
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