Maharashtra govt proposes subsidy for onion farmers

With a sharp fall in onion prices due to increase in supply and unsold stock, the Maharashtra government proposes to give a subsidy of Rs 100 a quintal to growers.

A senior official from the department of marketing told Business Standard, “A proposal has been sent to the Centre, with a request to share 50 per cent of the subsidy to be provided. The government will not procure onion but help by providing the subsidy.”

The state government will have to bear an additional burden of Rs 40 crore on account of the subsidy, to growers from Nashik, Pune, Ahmednagar, Dhule and other parts. Model (average) onion prices were Rs 6 a kg on Friday at the major wholesale market at Lasalgaon in Nashik District; low quality onion has been offered in the past week at Rs 1.50-2 a kg, according to the National Horticultural Research and Development Foundation. A year before at Lasalgaon, the price was around Rs 50 a kg.

Arrivals have also increased; 1,750 tonnes came there on Friday. And, supply of red onion has begun from South India. Onion has also come to the market from Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh.

The government's move comes after political parties and various farmer bodies protested at a farmer from Karanjgaon village in Nashik district having to have been offered no more than five paise a kg, prompting him to dump his produce of 13 quintals in protest. In general, growers’ cost of production is Rs 885 a qtl; sale is at Rs 500 a qtl.

Nanasaheb Patil, chairman of the Agricultural Produce Market Committee at Lasalgaon, said the government's proposal of Rs 100 a qtl subsidy was inadequate; it should be at least Rs 500 a qtl. “This apart, the government needs to provide incentives for export. Though the Centre has kept a zero minimum export price, these are not picking up. The Centre can provide assistance from the Price Stabilisation Fund on a priority basis,”' he opined.

Deepak Pagar, functionary at the Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana, part of the ruling coalition, demanded a Minimum
Support Price for onions.

ALSO READ: Centre may buy more onions to protect farmers