Mumbai/Delhi, September 16: Two days after the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) prohibited the export of all varieties of onion, former Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis wrote a letter to Union Commerce & Industry Minister Piyush Goyal. In his letter Fadnavis to lift the ban on onion exports.

Requesting the Piyush Goyal to lift the ban on onions, Fadnavis took to Twitter and wrote, "It is my humble request to you to lift the ban on the export of onions immediately. Onions from Maharashtra have a huge demand in international level and farmers get appropriate price by selling it. With the ban, farmers are very upset. I hope you will make a wise decision." Bangladesh Urges India to Revoke Ban on Onion Export.

Here's what Fadnavis wrote:

Earlier on Monday, DGFT issued a notification, stating 'The export of all varieties of onion…is prohibited with immediate effect'. The ban also includes for Bangalore rose onions and Krishnapuram onions. Both thses varieties were free to export till now.

The DGFT had claimed that the ban was imposed as rates have increased and there is a shortage of onions in the domestic market. One of the officials also claimed that a huge amount of exports were done in the last few months during the COVID-19 pandemic.

As per details, India had exported $198 million of onions in the April-June period of FY 2021, while $440 million in the entire 2019-20. It is to be known that Malaysia, UAE, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka are the top importers of Indian onions.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 16, 2020 04:12 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).