Onions and houses.

Onion prices have risen by 45% in the the last one week, from Rs 38 per kg to Rs 55 per kg. HT, 5 August. And the price is likely to rise further. " Supply in the domestic market is low due to rain destroying the harvest in Maharashtra and exports to other countries," said Anil Malhotra of the Agricultural Produce Marketing Committee. Hang on. Weren't the politicians and the freeloading press promising us cheap food as the monsoons have been very good this year? Yet prices of all food items including, vegetables, even seasonal ones, milk and meat are rising. With oil at $105 a barrel and the rupee dropping to yet record lows the cost of diesel is set to rise further adding to prices. Reasons for rising prices of food are not hard to find. The government sets a Minimum Support Price for cereals, such as wheat and rice, which keeps the price high even when there is a bumper crop and farmers grow ever more cereals in the knowledge that the government is going to buy their produce. Why grow fruits and vegetables, which are perishable items, when you can safely grow wheat, secure in the knowledge that the government is going to bail you out. The other reason is that the price of properties in Delhi have risen by 60% in the 2 years between 2011 to 2013, higher than prices in 43 other countries. The next is Sao Paolo in Brazil which has risen by 43%, followed by Hong and Kong at 33%. TOI, 5 August. But Delhi is second to Jaipur where property prices have risen by 67%, Pune is third at 49%, followed by Chennai at 42%, Bhopal at 38%, Mumbai at 27%, Faridabad at 25%, Bengaluru at 24%, Lucknow at 17% and Ahmedabad at 16%. We have to remember that this is on an extremely high base because prices had already increased by 800% by 2011. This phenomenal rise in prices has led to an explosion in construction of domestic properties which has sucked in vast numbers of rural labor, increasing wages and adding to prices of food. Land prices have risen to shocking levels and farmers have happily sold out, reducing the area of arable land. The taxi stand near the domestic airport in Delhi has around 800 taxi drivers, of whom about 45 are millionaires who come for duty in their own cars. They still drive taxis because they are not educated. Thus the growth in the economy has been based on one-time windfall gains and black money. Only in India would onion prices rise on properties. Incredible India.