The continual rise in onion prices is hitting the middle class hard in India. Onion prices have gone up from Rs. 25 a kg in September to Rs. 60. Just weeks ago, the price of pulses had also shot through the roof which is leaving many families struggling to purchase the food staple.
A weak monsoon has ensured a poor harvest, which could be one of the reasons for the price hike. But even the prices of milk and wheat have gone up over the last one month, but it is the onion which is stinging the most now.
It is not just households that have been affected. Restaurants, too, are finding it difficult to ensure profits as dal is something that 90% of their customers order and that's not coming cheap. And the high price of onions, that are a necessary accompaniment, is not helping.
Rising for the third straight month, retail inflation has climbed to 5 per cent in October, as against 4.62 per cent in the same month a year ago due to costlier pulses and other food items.
