As of January 23, retail prices of onions have risen by 36%, tomatoes by 25%, while potato rates have decreased by 2% compared to the same period last year. Despite consumers experiencing higher prices, farmers are also realizing higher rates, with the proportion of the hike nearly in sync. An analysis based on data from the Agmarknet portal showed that the average farm-gate prices of tomatoes in January increased by 26.2% to ₹1,407/quintal from ₹1,115 a year ago, while onion prices rose by 23% to ₹1,586/quintal from ₹1,288. In contrast, the average potato price dipped by 13.5% to ₹771/quintal from ₹891.
The Consumer Affairs Ministry's intervention has been more effective than the Operation Green scheme, managed by the Food Processing Ministry. The Consumer Affairs Ministry, through cooperatives like Nafed and NCCF, managed to sell onions to consumers at ₹25/kg, checking open market prices that could have crossed ₹100/kg. However, the Operation Green scheme, designed to protect farmers against price crashes, has not been tailored for consumers. The scheme provides a 50% subsidy for transporting crops from production to storage and hiring appropriate storage facilities. Despite efforts, there is a concern that retail prices for onions and tomatoes might further increase in the summer, traditionally a period of higher rates.