In an effort to reduce the price of onions in the open market, the sale of onions at ₹35 per kg via fair price shops was launched in Chennai and other cities across Tamil Nadu on Thursday (September 3, 2026).

Minister for Food and Civil Supplies Venkataramanan and Minister for Cooperation V. Gandhirajan inaugurated the sale in Chennai. Around 1,000 tonnes of onions harvested in the Rabi season have been procured from Nasik.

The stipulations for the onions include that they are A-grade, of good marketable quality, not rotting, do not have excessive sprouting, and are of size 45 mm and above.

They have been obtained by the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd. (NAFED) and the National Cooperative Consumers Federation of India Ltd. (NCCF) under instructions from the Government of India and brought to Chennai by goods train and road as well. Sources said that another rail load was also expected to arrive shortly.

Consumer activist T. Sadagopan said that the government should take steps to make onions available in the farthest corners of the State. “Rice and sugar prices are also causing worry. The festival season is just starting. The government must take effective measures to curtail retail price inflation,” he said.