Onion prices are once again making homemakers weep.

For the last couple of days, retail vendors in Ranchi and Jamshedpur have been selling onions at anywhere between Rs 70 and Rs 80 a kg.

Coal town Dhanbad and Bokaro too are buying this kitchen staple between Rs 65 and Rs 70 a kg depending on the quality.

At several markets in the steel city, the crop was sold for Rs 85 a kg or even more on Friday.

Till last week, onions were available between Rs 35 and Rs 40 per kg in the steel city, Ranchi and Dhanbad.

Traders in Jharkhand are anticipating a further rise in prices.

Onion production in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka was badly hit this year due to heavy rains which have damaged crops.

Currently, four to five trucks -- each carrying 25 tonnes of the pulp -- are arriving in vegetable market yards at Ranchi, Jamshedpur and Dhanbad.

“Farmers are themselves selling onions at a very high rate. How can you expect a price buffer so soon?” said Ranganath, a wholesale onion dealer at Sakchi.

Wholesalers are selling onions between Rs 60 and Rs 65 in Jamshedpur, Ranchi and Dhanbad.

Traders said the rates are expected to come down only after fresh stocks arrive by the end of next month after Diwali.

Pankaj Kumar, a wholesaler at Harmu in Ranchi, said: “The rate would come down only after fresh stocks arrive by the end of November.”

He said onions, which sold at Rs 35 a kg in the retail market even a week ago, was now dearer at Rs 70 a kg in most markets of the state capital.

An onion vendor at Purana Bazar in Dhanbad said the price rise was bad for business too. “Till last week, I used to get regular customers every day. But for the last couple of days, people are hesitant to buy,” he said.

Officials at Parsudih-based Krishi Utpad Bazaar Samiti (KUBS) said onions in most places across the state were being supplied from Nashik and Pune as consignments have stopped coming from Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka because of this year’s heavy rains.

“There is a supply restriction which has resulted in a price rise. In normal conditions here, seven-eight trucks used to bring onions. The situation is the same elsewhere in Ranchi and other places,” said an official.

He ruled out the possibility of artificial hoarding which might have resulted in a price rise.

Homemakers are crying hoarse over the sky-rocketing onion prices.

“Onion is a kitchen essential, but the rise in its price is taking a big toll on the common man’s budget. The price of onion has skyrocketed to Rs 80 in many retail markets here. The state government should make onions available at a concessional rate through Suvidha Kendras,” rued Anindita Choudhary, a homemaker at Kadma in Jamshedpur.