Onion producers in Maharashtra are gearing up for an extensive “market closure” agitation to protest against the union government’s policies concerning onion marketing and exports. 

Led by farmers in Nashik, the epicentre of onion production in the region, the agitating farmers have been conducting a series of meetings over the past few weeks to strategise their approach. Their primary grievance is the alleged disregard by the government for their demands.

The farmers are vehemently expressing their discontent, asserting that they will disrupt onion markets to draw attention to what they perceive as the government’s failure to address their concerns.

Plans include a halt in onion supplies to the market and a boycott of Agricultural Produce Market Committees (APMCs). Nana Bacchav, a farmer leader, emphasised that despite repeated pleas to the government to address the issues raised by farmers, there has been no acknowledgment or response. According to Bacchav, the government’s policies, exacerbated by a recent export ban, have inflicted significant setbacks on onion farmers already grappling with the aftermath of massive damage to onion storage facilities in chawls.

Nashik farmers are particularly distressed by the sharp decline in onion prices, which have plummeted from ₹2,000 a quintal in the first week of December to a mere ₹100 per quintal. The export ban has exacerbated the situation, resulting in an estimated loss of ₹1,200 crore for onion producers, said farmer leaders. Farmers are now calling for government intervention to compensate for this substantial financial setback.

This discontent is not confined to Nashik alone, as farmers are orchestrating a State-wide agitation. Organising meetings across districts, they aim to ensure that when the agitation is launched, no farmer will bring onions to the market, effectively shutting down the onion supply chain across the country.

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