No need to declare onion as an essential commodity: KV Thomas

New Delhi: Food and Consumer Affairs Minister KV Thomas on Thursday ruled out declaring onion as an essential commodity even as its retail prices have soared to Rs 70-80 a kilogram in most parts of the country.Onion, a politically sensitive commodity, in 2004 was deleted from the list of items covered under the Essential Commodities Act following satisfactory production and stable price trend. Earlier, there were 130 commodities under the Act. Gradually, the government reduced the number of items in the list to seven. The list now includes items like drugs, fertilizer and food stuffs including edible oil, and petroleum and petroleum products. The Essential Commodities Act was enacted to ensure easy availability of essential commodities to consumers and to protect them from exploitation by unscrupulous traders.