Residents rail rising onion prices

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, December 7

Former municipal councillor Vijay Kumar, along with city residents, staged a protest by wearing garlands of onions to express their resentment over the skyrocketing onion prices at Parasram Nagar.

The protesters also put onions in jewellery boxes and placed these in jewellery shops to symbolise that onion has started feeling an expensive ornament and was far away from common man’s reach. They also raised slogans against the government and demanded that prices of the most common kitchen ingredient must be brought down at the earliest.

Donning garlands of onion, the protesters carried out a march in Parasram Nagar area. Vijay Kumar said: “The government has failed miserably in controlling black marketing, as a result of which, the common man has to bear the brunt. Had the government taken requisite steps against the hoarders and black marketers, things would have been different. Earlier, the rates of onion were around Rs70 for one kg and were still not manageable for a large section of people but now things have changed completely and rates of onion have shot through the roof. The bulb is now selling at Rs125 per kg.”

The protesters said if the government failed to bring down the onion prices in the coming weeks, they would up the ante against it.