In the wake of a consistent drop in the onion prices, angry farmers stopped the auction of the key kitchen staple at Maharashtra’s Lasalgaon Agriculture Produce Market Committee (APMC), Asia’s biggest onion market. The price per kilogram of onion came down to Rs 2 to Rs 4, which angered the growers.
A representative of the onion growers said the government should immediately declare a grant of Rs 1,500 per quintal of onions and purchase their produce at Rs 15 to Rs 20 per kg, or else they will not let the auction resume at the Lasalgaon APMC, located in Nashik district.
As soon as the auction process began as the market opened for the week on Monday, onions fetched a minimum price of Rs 200 per quintal, the maximum rate of Rs 800 per quintal and an average price of Rs 400-450 per quintal.
As a result, the angry farmers led by the Maharashtra Rajya Kanda Utpadak Sanghatana stopped the auction of onions and started an agitation. On Saturday 2,404 quintal onions arrived at the APMC and the prices were Rs 351 minimum, Rs 1,231 maximum and Rs 625 average per quintal.
During the ongoing Budget Session of the state legislature, the government should immediately declare Rs 1,500 per quintal grant for onions and purchase the produce, being currently sold for Rs 3,4, 5 per kg, at a price of Rs 15 to Rs 20 per kg. If these two demands are not met today, onion auction at Lasalgaon APMC will not start at all,” Maharashtra Rajya Kanda Utpadak Sanghatana leader Bharat Dighole said.