Farmers step up protest against onion export ban, block highway, prevent auction at APMC mandis

After police forced them off the highway, the farmers entered the Gondal APMC mandi and prevented the auction of onion from resuming. “After Saturday’s protests seemed to have subsided, we had opened our gates for farmers to bring their onions to our yard for auction. However, farmers first occupied the highway while protesting against the export ban and then prevented our auctioneer from conducting an auction of onion that was unloaded on our APMC yard. In view of the protests, trade of onions couldn’t resume,” Tarun Pachani, secretary of Gondal APMC, told The Indian Express.

Farmers emptied their onion bags on the NH-27 in front of the gate of the APMC yard blocking the highway. (Express photo)

Similar scenes were witnessed in Mahuva APMC mandi in Bhavnagar also. “Protesting farmers prevented us from resuming the auction, fearing their onion will get sold at low price in view of the ban on exports of onion. Therefore, though our APMC yard had recorded arrivals of 30,000 bags on Tuesday and we had decided to resume the auction from Thursday, no auction could be conducted for those 30,000 bags,” Ghanshyam Patel, chairman of Mahuva APMC said.

In Rajkot, the third largest wholesale market of onion, the APMC mandi could auction off 4,000 bags that had arrived in the mandi the previous night. However, following protests in Gondal and Mahuva, traders decided to suspend onion trade again from Friday. “Traders have decided that they would not take part in the auction tomorrow and accordingly they have informed farmers not to cart their onions to Rajkot APMC yard till further notice,” an officer of Rajkot APMC said.

Onion growers and traders of Gujarat have been protesting publicly since the Central government issued a notification on December 7 to impose a blanket ban on export of onions from midnight of December 8 onwards. As the export ban came into effect, prices in APMC mandis in Gujarat crashed from around Rs 4,000 per quintal (100 kg make one quintal) to Rs 2,500 per quintal on December 8. Since then, trading of onion has remained suspended in Gondal and Mahuva, while Rajkot mandi could do some trade Thursday before deciding to suspend it one more time.

Farmers protest on the highway at Gondal in Rajkot on Thursday. (Express Photo)

After the export ban, farmers realised they would not be able to recover even cultivation costs, they said. “My onion used to get sold at Rs 700 to Rs 800 (per 20 kg). Now, traders are quoting Rs 200 to Rs 250 only. How can I sell it at that price?” Chandu Paghdar, a farmer from Dholwa village of Junagadh district who had come to Gondal to sell his onion, told the media while participating in blocking of the highway. “I am a farmer. How can I fund the education of my children? Last year, I had to sell my onion at only Rs 2 per kg. Where was the government at that time?” he said, adding, “I request the government that we don’t want Rs 2,000 (of PMKISAN) nor do we want subsidies. What we need is remunerative prices. I urge the government to revoke the export ban or farmers will die by suicide.”

A farmer from Thorala village of Rajkot’s Jetpur taluka, who identified himself as Savaliya, said the export ban was like rubbing salt in the wounds of farmers after the Central government imposed a minimum exports price (MEP) of USD 800 (around Rs 6,640) per tonne for onion on October 29.

“The government prohibited exports overnight at a time when arrivals of onions had started peaking and prices had also started to soften. Before that, the government had imposed MEP till December 31. So, instead of applying ointment, the government has rubbed salt in the wounds of farmers by announcing an overnight export ban,” said Savaliya.

Meanwhile, Mohan Kundariya, Member of Parliament from Rajkot, said a group of MPs from Gujarat have made a representation to the Union Agriculture Minister over the issue. “There was anger among farmers due to a crash in prices following the ban on exports. Subsequently, Alpesh Dholariya, chairman of Gondal APMC, had written to me demanding the export ban should be revoked so that farmers can get a good price. Therefore, I, along with Rajesh Chudasama (Junagadh MP) and Ramesh Dhaduk (Porbandar MP) made a representation to the Union Agriculture Minister last evening. The Minister told us that he will call a meeting with NAFED and ensure that onion is procured at good rates,” Kundariya, the BJP MP, told the media Thursday.