Onion exporters are urging the Indian government to revoke the 20 per cent export duty on onions, as they anticipate a substantial increase in the arrival of fresh crops in the coming months.
The Horticulture Produce Exporters Association (HPEA) plans to formally request the Centre to withdraw the export duty within the next few days, citing the need to remain competitive in the global market.
Vikas Singh, vice-president of HPEA, emphasised that India’s current onion export prices are significantly higher than those of neighboring Pakistan and other countries.
“India’s export prices range from USD 600 to USD 720 per tonne, while Pakistan offers onions at around USD 500 per tonne,” Singh noted.
He believes that removing the export duty would bring India’s prices closer to USD 500 per tonne, making Indian onions more attractive on the international stage.
The call for a rollback of the export duty comes as India braces for a bumper crop of late kharif and summer onions.
Singh pointed out that the planting of these varieties has surged this year, with expected arrivals set to increase from next month.
This influx could lead to a further drop in domestic wholesale prices, making it critical to bolster exports to avoid market saturation.
Earlier this year, on September 13, the government eased export restrictions by reducing the onion export duty from 40 per cent to 20 per cent and removing the minimum export price (MEP) requirement of USD 550 per tonne.
Despite these adjustments, the volume of onion exports has still declined. According to the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Exports Development Authority (APEDA), India exported 4.03 lakh tonnes of onions in the first half of this financial year, a sharp drop from 13.10 lakh tonnes during the same period last year.
Exporters stress that lifting the remaining export duty will provide much-needed relief and help India reclaim its competitive edge in the global onion market.
