Onion is ready to make you cry once again. Onions often start showing tantrums in election years. Sometimes due to crop failure and sometimes due to hoarding. If the price of onion increases this time, onion traders will go on strike. Because, more than 500 traders buying onion from 15 APMCs in Maharashtra’s Nashik district have announced an indefinite strike from Wednesday i.e. today. They have decided not to participate in onion auctions in mandis, which could affect the supply of the produce in various parts of the country.
According to onion traders, two central government agencies – National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Limited (NAFED) and National Cooperative Consumers Federation of India Limited (NCCF) are buying onions from Nashik farmers and traders from their wholesale buyers. They are selling to APMC at much lower price than what they charge. Some traders said the price difference is between Rs 500-700 per quintal.
Let us tell you that during the last week, the retail price of onion has gone up from ₹25-30 per kilogram (kg) to ₹35-40 per kg in some parts of Mumbai and if the strike spreads to other onion producing centers in Maharashtra. , the supply will increase further. According to a Mumbai-based exporter, the impact is due to hoarding by some big traders.
Onion price is Rs 1500 per quintal in government agency and Rs 2000 per quintal in Lasalgaon.
Kshitij Jain, an onion trader, said, “Both the agencies are selling the produce at an average price of Rs 1,500 per quintal in other wholesale markets, while the average price is around Rs 2,000 in Lasalgaon APMC, the country’s largest wholesale onion market. per quintal.”
When will you get relief from inflation? Potato, onion, tomato, rice, wheat, milk and beans are giving some hints.
Jain asked, “Per quintal Rs. 300 freight and Rs. 150 per quintal bore charge, onion price per quintal is Rs. 2,500. How can we sell the produce to other states when both the central agencies are selling onions at a lower price than ours?
Purchased 3 lakh quintals of onions and preparing to purchase additional 2 lakh quintals.
Both NAFED and NCCF procured 3 lakh quintals of onions in the first phase and currently procurement of additional 2 lakh quintals is underway in Nashik. “We want both NAFED and NCCF to sell their buffer stock to retail markets instead of APMCs in other states,” said Khandu Devare, president of Nashik District Onion Traders Association. We also want the Center to withdraw the 40% export duty imposed on onion last month. Apart from this we want to reduce the market fee from Rs 1 per quintal to 50 paisa.