Koley Market: Onion, the staple of Indian kitchens, is currently retailing at around Rs 15 a kilo because of higher yield in Bengal this year compared to 2017, but market observers say this price level could be hard to maintain.

Sources in the agri-marketing department said the state had produced nearly five lakh tonne of onions, around two lakh tonnes more than last year, the bulk of it coming from Hooghly, East Burdwan, Nadia and Murshidabad.

Officials attribute the improved yield to more farmers taking up onion cultivation across Nadia and Murshidabad. In Malda and Birbhum, many cultivators have switched to onion in the hope of profiting like those who did last year.

According to the finance department's statistical handbook, Economic Review, the land under onion cultivation in the last financial year was around 32,000 hectares. In 2014-15, the area was 25,310 hectares.

With production of onion shooting up, particularly of the rabi variety, supply to the markets has increased and wholesale and retail prices have fallen. A kilo of onion had retailed for around Rs 27 at this time last year. The current price is nearly half. In the corresponding period in 2016, the price of onion was Rs 24-25 a kilo.

"In wholesale markets across Calcutta, including Koley Market, the price of onion has dropped because of increased production," said Kamal Dey, a member of the state government's task force on agricultural produce.

Bengal requires 9.5 to 10 lakh tonne of onion a year. The crop is cultivated twice, once during winter ( rabi crop) and again around the monsoon.

Since the state lacks proper storage facilities, farmers tend to sell off the season's entire produce even if the price is low. But once supply can't meet the demand, onion is sourced from Nasik in Maharashtra, Akola in Rajasthan and Bengaluru.

Market observers said that from July-end, onion from other states, particularly Maharashtra, would flood markets in Bengal at higher prices than now. "This spiralling of prices could have been stalled if farmers managed to hold on to their seasonal yield for at least two more months," said Dey, who is also the president of the Koley Market Vendors' Association.

Onion can't be kept in cold storage, unlike the potato. A room with a straw roof and walls made of iron mesh is considered ideal for onion storage. The recommended temperature is around 30 degrees Celsius, coupled with relative humidity of 70 per cent.

"Onion stored in bulk has a huge respiratory output, which is why it needs storage facilities with good ventilation," said a scientist in the department of agriculture.

Storage facilities have come up in the districts but their number is inadequate. "Our storage rooms are small ones with a maximum capacity of 60 to 70 quintals. In Nasik, there are community storage centres with a capacity of 16,000 metric tonnes," said a senior officer of the agriculture department.