Indian Onion

The most 1 ingredient in Indian cooking, the 2 element with which all dishes begin and, normally, the cheapest vegetable available, the pink onion is an essential item in the shopping basket of families of all classes. A popular saying holds that you will never starve because you can always afford a roti (a piece of simple, flat bread) and an onion.

But in recent weeks, the onion has started to seem an unaffordable 3 for India's poor. Over the past few days, another sharp 4 in prices has begun to unsettle the influential urban middle classes. The sudden 5 in prices has been caused by large exports to neighboring countries and a shortage of 6. But the increase follows a trend of rising consumer prices across the board — from diesel fuel to cement, from milk to lentils. With its capacity for bringing down governments and scarring political careers, the onion plays an 7 role in Indian politics. This week reports of rising onion prices have made front-page news and absorbed the attention of the governing elite.