Onion farmers protest Centre’s 40% duty on export, halts auction in Maharashtra

The onion growers of Rahuri tehsil of Ahmednagar district halted the ongoing auction of onion in the wholesale market.

“The Union government’s anti-farmer stand has again come to fore. Farmers in Maharashtra were expecting good returns from onion exports, but the imposed duty has ensured that there will not be any export. The prices in the domestic market will crash and farmers will incur losses,” news agency PTI quoted Sandeep Jagtap, state president of Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatna.

The Central government on Saturday imposed a 40 per cent duty on the export of onions till December 31, 2023 to increase domestic availability amid signs of increasing prices.

Several parts of Maharashtra have received insufficient rainfall and this will delay the arrival of fresh onions in the market, he said, accusing the government of protecting the interests of consumers and ignoring farmers.

“Protests will be held in wholesale markets across the state to mount pressure on the Union government,” Jagtap said.

A group of farmers in Rahuri tehsil of Ahmednagar district halted the auction of onions in the wholesale market.

“The Centre should also pay attention to our woes because the export duty has sent a message to traders that all the available onion is going to be sold in domestic markets only. Traders have now started quoting lower prices for our produce,” a farmer protesting in Rahuri said.

According to sources at Lasalgaon Agriculture Produce Market Committee, Asia’s largest wholesale onion market, there was a rise of nearly 45 per cent in the prices of the kitchen staple last week.

“Onion was being sold at ₹1,500 per quintal two weeks ago, and it jumped to ₹2,200 in just one week. Now, the rates have started coming down, as exports have become nearly impossible,” a trader from Lasalgaon APMC said.

Updated: 20 Aug 2023, 05:25 PM IST