Pawar claims sharp fall in onion, vegetable rates

When repeatedly asked for the reasons of recent price rise, Pawar said there has been "a sharp decline in prices of onion and vegetables". He also claimed that prices of wheat, rice and sugar are minimum in India.

The government faces criticism on rising prices, especially of food items. Onion prices which soared to as high as Rs 80 per kg barely a month ago, coupled high rates of other vegetables like tomato have put the government in a tight spot.

The food inflation remains at a high level of 15.52 per cent for the first week of January. The government had announced various measures to rein in rising prices.

Making a case for sugar exports, Pawar said, "Export of sugar is a must otherwise the prices of sugar would fall to lowest ebb and farmers would stop growing sugarcane."
The food ministry recently had decided to put on hold the decision on exports of five lakh tonnes of sugar under open licence category in view of high prices.

Attributing less production and increasing population to the price rise, Pawar said, "Price rise can be checked by increasing production. Farmers should be encouraged to grow more."

He also attributed changing food habit for spiraling prices. "While earlier handful of people were consuming wheat and rest were consuming Jowar and Bajra, however now it is otherwise," he added.

Earlier, Pawar inspected CIRG Makhadoom, Farah and advised the Scientist to concentrate their researches farmer oriented. He was of opinion that researches should be made so as to benefit more to common man. He stressed the need of cow and buffalo keeping.

"With goat we can not fulfill demand of milk.It would help to increase meat production. However for reducing prices of milk, cow and buffalo keeping should be encouraged," he said.