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Rising onion prices sting India
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-23802653Before you dismiss this as "who cares", it was tomato prices that started the Egypt protests. The BJP (just this side of the Nazi party) is in position to do disturbingly well in the next round of elections and they're hammering this for all it's worth. This is in the context of a collapse of the Indian rupee, which makes importing onions to make up for the domestic shortage harder.
The Indian economy is facing one of its worst crises in a decade and while that is worrying the political and economic fraternity, what is worrying ordinary Indians is the price of onions.
On Sunday, a truck on the Delhi-Jaipur highway was hijacked by robbers. Its precious cargo? Forty tonnes of onions.
People here eat their way through 15 million tonnes of onions a year. Almost every dish uses it, whether cooked in a curry or eaten raw as an accompaniment to a meal.
A month ago, one kilogram of onions would have cost about 20 rupees (20p; 30 cents). Since then, the price has gone up nearly five-fold, costing up to 100 rupees and stinging everyone in India.
On Sunday, a truck on the Delhi-Jaipur highway was hijacked by robbers. Its precious cargo? Forty tonnes of onions.
People here eat their way through 15 million tonnes of onions a year. Almost every dish uses it, whether cooked in a curry or eaten raw as an accompaniment to a meal.
A month ago, one kilogram of onions would have cost about 20 rupees (20p; 30 cents). Since then, the price has gone up nearly five-fold, costing up to 100 rupees and stinging everyone in India.