Bhubaneswar, Oct 31 (PTI) In protest against onion price rise, National Students' Union of India (NSUI) activists on Tuesday staged a protest near the official residence of Odisha Agriculture Minister Ranendra Pratap Swain here and sold the bulb at Rs 20 a kg.

Onion is currently selling at Rs 60 to Rs 70 in the local markets here.

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As part of the protest, the activists also threw a packet of onion inside the minister's house, police said.

Security was beefed up near the minister's house to avoid any untoward incident during the protest, police added.

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"Onion prices have skyrocketed in Odisha and the state government has failed to control it," NSUI state Yashir Nawaz said.

In 2015, the BJD government had launched Onion Mission with an outlay of Rs 15 crore to enhance its production in the state. However, the mission failed to yield any results, he alleged.

Meanwhile, Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare Minister Atanu Sabyasachi Nayak blamed the Centre for onion price hike.

"Onion prices have spiked in other states too and it has become a national issue. The central government should look into it," Nayak said.

The state government is taking action against traders who are hoarding onions to create artificial scarcity, he added.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)