News Analysis India

Tag: Onion

  • Maharashtra Agriculture Minister asks people to stop consuming onion if they can’t afford it

    Express News Service

    MUMBAI: With onion farmers and traders up in arms against the Centre’s announcement to impose 40 per cent duty on the export of kitchen staple, cabinet minister Dada Bhuse asked people to stop consuming onion if they cannot afford to.

    The markets in Maharashtra including Asia’s largest onion market in Lasalgaon were shut down in protest against the central government’s decision to impose 40 per cent duty on the export of onion.  The farmers said the Centre’s decision will bring prices of pod onion tumbling down in the domestic market.

    Against this backdrop, Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde camp) minister, Dada Bhuse said that farmers should get decent prices for their crops. “If some people feel the present onion prices are unreasonable they should stop eating onion for the next three to four months. If they don’t eat onion, nothing will happen to their health,” Bhuse said. 

    He also said that if people can afford to buy a car, they can indeed afford to shell out an extra Rs 10 on kg of onion. 

    Reacting to the minister’s remark, NCP leader Jitendra Awhad said this government is insensitive toward the problems faced by consumers and farmers.

    Maharashtra Congress president Nana Patole said the BJP-led government is preoccupied with poaching MLAs and toppling governments and hence it is not concerned about the people. 

    On the other hand, farmers are concerned about onion prices. Nanasaheb Patil, former chairman of the Lasalgaon Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC) said during summer, when the onion prices crashed, farmers were either forced to dump their produce on the roads or sell at throw-away prices. At that time, nobody including Prime Minister Narendra Modi came to the rescue of the farmers. Now, when the farmers are able to get some decent prices, the government has imposed a duty on the export of onion.  This will damage the market and farmers will be deprived of getting the a fair price for their produce. 

    Minister’s take on consuming fish and Aishwarya Rai’s eyes

    Earlier, tribal development minister Vijaykumar Gavit (BJP) stirred a hornet’s nest by saying Bollywood actor Aishwarya Rai Bachchan has got beautiful eyes because she used to eat fish regularly. He said youths should consume fish so that it will help them have fair skin snd eyes like Aishwarya Rai and this would help them lure the girls and boys of their choice.  

    MUMBAI: With onion farmers and traders up in arms against the Centre’s announcement to impose 40 per cent duty on the export of kitchen staple, cabinet minister Dada Bhuse asked people to stop consuming onion if they cannot afford to.

    The markets in Maharashtra including Asia’s largest onion market in Lasalgaon were shut down in protest against the central government’s decision to impose 40 per cent duty on the export of onion.  The farmers said the Centre’s decision will bring prices of pod onion tumbling down in the domestic market.

    Against this backdrop, Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde camp) minister, Dada Bhuse said that farmers should get decent prices for their crops. “If some people feel the present onion prices are unreasonable they should stop eating onion for the next three to four months. If they don’t eat onion, nothing will happen to their health,” Bhuse said. googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    He also said that if people can afford to buy a car, they can indeed afford to shell out an extra Rs 10 on kg of onion. 

    Reacting to the minister’s remark, NCP leader Jitendra Awhad said this government is insensitive toward the problems faced by consumers and farmers.

    Maharashtra Congress president Nana Patole said the BJP-led government is preoccupied with poaching MLAs and toppling governments and hence it is not concerned about the people. 

    On the other hand, farmers are concerned about onion prices. Nanasaheb Patil, former chairman of the Lasalgaon Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC) said during summer, when the onion prices crashed, farmers were either forced to dump their produce on the roads or sell at throw-away prices. At that time, nobody including Prime Minister Narendra Modi came to the rescue of the farmers. Now, when the farmers are able to get some decent prices, the government has imposed a duty on the export of onion.  This will damage the market and farmers will be deprived of getting the a fair price for their produce. 

    Minister’s take on consuming fish and Aishwarya Rai’s eyes

    Earlier, tribal development minister Vijaykumar Gavit (BJP) stirred a hornet’s nest by saying Bollywood actor Aishwarya Rai Bachchan has got beautiful eyes because she used to eat fish regularly. He said youths should consume fish so that it will help them have fair skin snd eyes like Aishwarya Rai and this would help them lure the girls and boys of their choice.  

  • Maharashtra: BJP ministers face farmers’ wrath over plunging onion, cotton prices

    Express News Service

    MUMBAI: BJP ministers in Maharashtra face the wrath of the farmers over free-falling prices of onion and cotton.

    This comes even as a group of Tamil Nadu farmers, led by its leader PR Pandian, began their march towards the Parliament from Kanniyakumari, a few days ago, urging the Prime Minister to implement his assurances during farmers’ protest in Delhi. 

    On Sunday, angry farmers threw onions at the vehicle of Maharashtra deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis. Union minister for state and BJP Lok Sabha MP Bharati Pawar and state agriculture minister Abdul Sattar too faced the ire of the farmers.

    The unrest among onion and cotton growers in the state has been escalating over plunging prices and the failure of the Centre to extend a helping hand to the farmers in crisis. 

    Angry farmers could be seen surrounding Bharati Pawar as seen in a video that went viral on social media even as the minister tried to soothe their tempers by stating that the Centre has been buying onion through NAFED (National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India) and ensured that there is no ban on the export of onion as well. She said that onion prices in the international market were down and hence the fall in the prices in the domestic market. Further, the supply of onion in the market is quite high.

    However, in the video, the farmers could be seen attributing the wrong export-import policies of the Centre for their plight. The angry farmers argued that the Centre keeps changing its policies constantly and the farmers are suffering because of this.

    “The Centre should compensate us by buying our onions at the international market rate and also extend all possible help to us,” the farmers insisted.

    Meanwhile, Devendra Fadnavis faced the ire of the farmers in Amaravati where the latter threw onions at his vehicle before the police swung into action and detained the protesters.

    ALSO READ | We’re with onion farmers, says CM Eknath Shinde in Maharashtra assembly

    Maharashtra agriculture minister Abdul Sattar also faced the ire of the farmers at the agricultural exhibition in Amaravati. The farmers informed him that the price of onion has gone down below the price of old newspapers. Farmers argued that last year they sold a quintal of cotton for s 14,000 but currently they get only Rs 8,000 per quintal.

    “We are not able to recover the input cost as well. If the government fail to help us there is no option left for us but to commit suicide,” the farmers told him. 

    As reported by The New Indian Express, the representatives of the Tamil Nadu All Farmers Organization Coordination  Committee, set out their Delhi march from Kanniyakumari late last week. They would travel via Thiruvananthapuram, Chennai, Vijayawada,  Hyderabad, Raipur, Bhubaneswar, Kolkata, Patna, Varanasi, Jaipur and Chandigarh, before reaching New Delhi on March 20. The farmers are seeking, among other demands, a permanent law for fixing profitable minimum support price for agricultural produce every year.

    MUMBAI: BJP ministers in Maharashtra face the wrath of the farmers over free-falling prices of onion and cotton.

    This comes even as a group of Tamil Nadu farmers, led by its leader PR Pandian, began their march towards the Parliament from Kanniyakumari, a few days ago, urging the Prime Minister to implement his assurances during farmers’ protest in Delhi. 

    On Sunday, angry farmers threw onions at the vehicle of Maharashtra deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis. Union minister for state and BJP Lok Sabha MP Bharati Pawar and state agriculture minister Abdul Sattar too faced the ire of the farmers.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    The unrest among onion and cotton growers in the state has been escalating over plunging prices and the failure of the Centre to extend a helping hand to the farmers in crisis. 

    Angry farmers could be seen surrounding Bharati Pawar as seen in a video that went viral on social media even as the minister tried to soothe their tempers by stating that the Centre has been buying onion through NAFED (National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India) and ensured that there is no ban on the export of onion as well. She said that onion prices in the international market were down and hence the fall in the prices in the domestic market. Further, the supply of onion in the market is quite high.

    However, in the video, the farmers could be seen attributing the wrong export-import policies of the Centre for their plight. The angry farmers argued that the Centre keeps changing its policies constantly and the farmers are suffering because of this.

    “The Centre should compensate us by buying our onions at the international market rate and also extend all possible help to us,” the farmers insisted.

    Meanwhile, Devendra Fadnavis faced the ire of the farmers in Amaravati where the latter threw onions at his vehicle before the police swung into action and detained the protesters.

    ALSO READ | We’re with onion farmers, says CM Eknath Shinde in Maharashtra assembly

    Maharashtra agriculture minister Abdul Sattar also faced the ire of the farmers at the agricultural exhibition in Amaravati. The farmers informed him that the price of onion has gone down below the price of old newspapers. Farmers argued that last year they sold a quintal of cotton for s 14,000 but currently they get only Rs 8,000 per quintal.

    “We are not able to recover the input cost as well. If the government fail to help us there is no option left for us but to commit suicide,” the farmers told him. 

    As reported by The New Indian Express, the representatives of the Tamil Nadu All Farmers Organization Coordination  Committee, set out their Delhi march from Kanniyakumari late last week. They would travel via Thiruvananthapuram, Chennai, Vijayawada,  Hyderabad, Raipur, Bhubaneswar, Kolkata, Patna, Varanasi, Jaipur and Chandigarh, before reaching New Delhi on March 20. The farmers are seeking, among other demands, a permanent law for fixing profitable minimum support price for agricultural produce every year.

  • Maharashtra farmer earns only Rs 2.49 net profit on sale of 512 kg onions

    By PTI

    PUNE: A farmer from Maharashtra’s Solapur was in for a rude shock when he got to know that he has earned a profit of merely Rs 2.49 against the sale of his 512 kg onions to a trader in the district.

    The farmer, 63-year-old Rajendra Chavan who resides in Barshi tehsil of Solapur, said his onion yield fetched a price of Rs 1 per kg at the Solapur market yard and after all the deductions he received this paltry sum as his net profit last week.

    Talking to PTI, Chavan said, “I had sent 10 bags of onions weighing more than five quintals to an onion trader in Solapur for sale. But after deducting charges towards loading, transport, labour and others, I received a net profit of just Rs 2.49 from him. The rate the trader offered me was Rs 100 per quintal. The overall weight of the crop was 512 kg and the total price he got for the produce was Rs 512,” he said.

    “After deductions worth Rs 509.51 against labour, weighing, transportation and other charges, I received a net profit of Rs 2.49. This is an insult to me and other onion-growers in the state. If we get such returns, how will we survive?” he asked.

    (Photo | Ravindra Kumar Adi Twitter)

    He said the onion farmers need to get a good price for the crop and the affected farmers get compensation.

    While Chavan claimed that the produce was of good quality, the trader said it was low-grade.

    “The farmer had brought only 10 bags and the produce was also of low grade. That is why, he got Rs 100 per quintal rate. So after all the deductions, he got Rs 2 as net profit,” the trader said.

    He added that the same farmer had received good returns in the recent past by selling more than 400 bags to me.

    “This time he brought the remaining produce that was hardly 10 bags and since the prices have gone down, he got this rate,” he said.

    Speaking to PTI, farmers leader and former MP Raju Shetti said that the onion hitting the market now is a ‘kharif’ produce and cannot be stored for a long time and that is why the shelf life of the product is short.

    “This onion needs to be sold in the market immediately and exported out. But due to glut, the prices of onions have nosedived in the market,” he said.

    He added that this onion is not being purchased by NAFED, so the only option is that the government should make the market available for this ‘kharif’ onion.

    “The government’s export and import policy regarding onions is not consistent. We had two permanent markets – Pakistan and Bangladesh, but they preferred buying onions from Iran instead of us due to the inconsistent policy of the government. The third market is Sri Lanka, but everyone knows their situation and no one is taking risks to send their produce,” he said.

    He added that the government should buy this onion or give subsidies to farmers.

    PUNE: A farmer from Maharashtra’s Solapur was in for a rude shock when he got to know that he has earned a profit of merely Rs 2.49 against the sale of his 512 kg onions to a trader in the district.

    The farmer, 63-year-old Rajendra Chavan who resides in Barshi tehsil of Solapur, said his onion yield fetched a price of Rs 1 per kg at the Solapur market yard and after all the deductions he received this paltry sum as his net profit last week.

    Talking to PTI, Chavan said, “I had sent 10 bags of onions weighing more than five quintals to an onion trader in Solapur for sale. But after deducting charges towards loading, transport, labour and others, I received a net profit of just Rs 2.49 from him. The rate the trader offered me was Rs 100 per quintal. The overall weight of the crop was 512 kg and the total price he got for the produce was Rs 512,” he said.

    “After deductions worth Rs 509.51 against labour, weighing, transportation and other charges, I received a net profit of Rs 2.49. This is an insult to me and other onion-growers in the state. If we get such returns, how will we survive?” he asked.

    (Photo | Ravindra Kumar Adi Twitter)

    He said the onion farmers need to get a good price for the crop and the affected farmers get compensation.

    While Chavan claimed that the produce was of good quality, the trader said it was low-grade.

    “The farmer had brought only 10 bags and the produce was also of low grade. That is why, he got Rs 100 per quintal rate. So after all the deductions, he got Rs 2 as net profit,” the trader said.

    He added that the same farmer had received good returns in the recent past by selling more than 400 bags to me.

    “This time he brought the remaining produce that was hardly 10 bags and since the prices have gone down, he got this rate,” he said.

    Speaking to PTI, farmers leader and former MP Raju Shetti said that the onion hitting the market now is a ‘kharif’ produce and cannot be stored for a long time and that is why the shelf life of the product is short.

    “This onion needs to be sold in the market immediately and exported out. But due to glut, the prices of onions have nosedived in the market,” he said.

    He added that this onion is not being purchased by NAFED, so the only option is that the government should make the market available for this ‘kharif’ onion.

    “The government’s export and import policy regarding onions is not consistent. We had two permanent markets – Pakistan and Bangladesh, but they preferred buying onions from Iran instead of us due to the inconsistent policy of the government. The third market is Sri Lanka, but everyone knows their situation and no one is taking risks to send their produce,” he said.

    He added that the government should buy this onion or give subsidies to farmers.

  • Farmers can insure up to 15 for horticulture crops

    All farmers producing horticultural crops in Rajnandgaon district who are indebted, aruni farmers till December 15 under the restructured weather based crop insurance scheme for the Rabi crop under tomato, brinjal, cauliflower, cabbage, onion and potato for the year 2020-21. You can get your horticulture crops insured by contacting a representative of the service center, bank branch, cooperative society or insurance company Bajaj Agence General Insurance Company.

    For this, state level representative of insurance company Gopal Rai can contact mobile number 8059840961 and district level representative Humesh Garg mobile number 7869843734. Assistant Director Horticulture told that in this scheme all the indebted farmers (landholders and share croppers) who are willing to join this scheme, such farmers will have to submit declaration or other mandatory documents related to the proposed crop, including self declaration letter. .

    In order to be insured for selected horticulture crops, farmers will have to pay five percent of the fixed debt for those crops as premium amount. The remaining premium amount will be 50-50 percent by the state government and the central government. Indebted farmers who do not want to join the scheme, will have to submit the declaration form signed by the Government of India signed by the selection form by seven days before the last date of the insurance application.