Salt Fever

Governments rise and fall on guns and butter. Or, in the case of India, on bombs and onions. Now salt is being added into the mix. Last week, voters in Delhi and Rajasthan--outraged by skyrocketing prices of onions, potatoes and tomatoes--tossed out the ruling Hindu nationalist party, which only months ago had been at the peak of its popularity after its testing of nuclear weapons.

Then this weekend, rumors of a salt shortage prompted panic buying, further shaking the nation’s stability. IndiaExpress Network, an online newspaper, in a story headlined “Salt Soars the Onion Way,” reports that the salt fever has spread to the major cities of Delhi, Calcutta and Bombay.

“While there are assurances from the central and state governments and also from the traders’ associations that there is no shortage of salt and that there is no cause for panic,” the article says, “the consumers are not taking any chances and are buying up the available salt in a frenzy.”

The vegetable shortages stem from horrendous October rains in the state of Maharashtra. Prices skyrocketed, driving onions and potatoes--staples of the Indian diet--out of the reach of many. The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party was particularly hard hit by this because of its rumored links with large vegetable traders.

“How can I spend half [my husband’s] salary on onions alone?” one voter asked in a Washington Post article. “How can I run my house? The price of onions is breaking my back.”