Pune/Nashik: Wholesale onion prices at Lasalgaon Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC), the country’s largest onion trading hub, crossed the ₹2,000-per-quintal mark on Monday for the first time since the arrival of the rabi (summer) crop this year.**EDS: WITH PTI STORY DEL3** New Delhi: A labourer rests on the onion sacks at Azadpur Mandi, a major market of the Agriculture Produce Marketing Committee (APMC), in New Delhi, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2019. Onion prices are spiralling reportedly due to shortage of supply and as per the data maintained by the consumer affairs ministry, retail onion prices rose to ₹57/kg in Delhi, ₹56/kg in Mumbai, ₹48/kg in Kolkata and ₹34/kg in Chennai last week. (PTI Photo/Shahbaz Khan) (PTI9_22_2019_000062A) *** Local Caption *** (PTI)According to Lasalgaon APMC officials, superior-quality onions fetched a maximum price of ₹2,030 per quintal, compared to the ₹1,500- ₹1,700 range at which they had been trading since April.Prices of lower-grade onions have also increased significantly. “Inferior-quality onions were auctioned at around ₹1,300 per quintal on Monday, against ₹800- ₹1,000 per quintal earlier,” an APMC official said.Market authorities attributed the price rise to lower arrivals as many farmers continue to hold back stocks in anticipation of further price increases.On Monday, arrivals at the mandi stood at around 7,000 quintals, nearly 11,000 quintals below normal.Lasalgaon APMC director Praveen Kadam said prices are likely to remain firm if arrivals do not improve.“Farmers are holding back their stocks because sowing of the kharif onion crop has been delayed due to inadequate rainfall. Normally, farmers sell their rabi onions to fund the purchase of fertilisers, seeds, and other inputs for the kharif season. However, with rains remaining deficient in many parts of Nashik district, sowing activities have been postponed, and farmers are choosing to retain their produce,” Kadam said.He added that although the Centre recently increased the procurement price for buffer stock purchases from ₹1,580 to ₹1,650 per quintal, farmers are showing little interest in selling to the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (NAFED) and the National Cooperative Consumers’ Federation (NCCF).“Traders in the open market are offering prices significantly higher than those being paid by NAFED and NCCF. As a result, farmers prefer to sell their produce through the mandis,” Kadam said.Market observers said onion prices are likely to remain elevated in the coming weeks unless monsoon activity improves and farmers begin releasing stocks into the market.