Farmers, traders cry foul as onion prices continue to fall
Farmers in Nashik district are angry as onion rates continue to fall to an extent where not even the basic cost can be recovered
PUNE: While onion prices have been falling since December 7 when onion exports were banned, a day after the Centre decided that the NCCF (National Cooperative Consumers’ Federation of India) and National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Limited (NAFED) would purchase two lakh metric tonnes of onion from growers in Maharashtra, farmers in Nashik district are seething as onion rates continue to fall to an extent where not even the basic cost can be recovered. Several videos have gone viral in which farmers are seen distributing onion for free due to the falling rates. From more than ₹35 per kg a month ago, the price of onion is now less than ₹20 per kg in the wholesale market.
Following the imposition of the ban on onion exports, the price of onion in the 17 market committees of Lasalgaon and Nashik districts started falling. From ₹3,000 to ₹4,000 per quintal, the price of onion plummeted to ₹1,500 per quintal. While the farmers protested last week, both farmers and exporters have become aggressive across APMC markets in Nashik district since Tuesday. According to the farmers in Nashik district, they have incurred losses to the tune of ₹150 to ₹200 crores with the price of onion in free fall. While traders and market committees too have incurred huge losses. Currently, the daily intake of onion in the Lasalgaon APMC market along with Vinchur, Niphad, Yeola and others is 40,000 quintals whereas all market committees in Nashik district together have about 1.5 lakh quintal of onion in stock. In Lasalgaon alone, farmers are facing daily losses of about ₹6 to ₹7 crore.
Balasaheb Darade, director of the traders’ association at Lasalgaon APMC, said, “When onion was being exported a few weeks ago, the daily rates at Lasalgaon APMC market were between ₹3,800 to ₹4,500 per quintal. After the ban on onion exports, the rates started going down and today, the rates are between ₹1,800 and ₹2,300 per quintal. The rates have decreased by 50% and hence, it is not affordable for anyone in the market; farmers or traders.”
Keshav Jagtap, an onion farmer from Yeola taluka in Nashik district, said, “Farmers and traders have suffered losses of around ₹40 crore in the last seven days and considering the arrival of onion in the entire district, there have been losses of ₹150 to ₹200 crores against around 10 lakh quintals of onion due to the fall in onion prices. The market committees, traders and farmers are demanding that the central government reconsider the export ban and provide immediate relief to the farmers who are already reeling under the losses due to unseasonal rain last month.”
A majority of the farmers from Nashik district are angry as the price of onion continues to fall post the ban on exports. On the other hand, the government is claiming that onion is being purchased by NAFED and NCCF but farmers claim that the onion is not being purchased.
“This fact is the biggest blunder of the central government that NCCF and NAFED are purchasing onion from the farmers. Basically, NAFED and NCCF do not have their own godowns. Even when they purchase onion in the Rabi season, they rely on private godowns, causing a lot of chaos. Certain officials, ministers, MLAs, MPs and a few farmer producer companies or federations accumulate crores of rupees in this situation,” said Maharashtra Onion Farmers’ Association president, Bharat Dighole.
