Import duties on onion abolished; exports banned

The finance ministry removed both import duty as well as the countervailing duty on onions.  
Currently, onion import attracts a customs duty of 5 per cent along with a countervailing duty of 4 per cent. The countervailing duty is levied to protect domestic producers.

In a matching gesture, the commerce ministry notified the ban on export of all varieties of onion till further orders. The ministry also decided to rope in three state-owned trading houses—STC, MMTC and PEC Limited—to import onion within the shortest possible time.
Efforts are on to import onion from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Iran, official sources told Deccan Herald.