Tags:
Journalism of Courage
NASHIK, JAN 13: The series of agitations by onion growers, who are demanding the lifting of the ban on onion export, has acquired political colour with Congress Party MPs lending their voice to the farmers8217; clamour.
The farmers fear that with fresh onion stock pouring into the make, prices may drop below break-even point.
The din, moreover, drowns out the voice of reason 8212; that ending the embargo may not bring onion prices back to a reasonable level.
The wholesale prices of onions, in four digits for the past four months, peaked to an unprecedented high of Rs 4,000 per quintal. Untimely rains destroyed seeds, necessitating re-sowing in various parts of the district. The high prices prompted farmers to resort to selling onions reserved for seed production.
The result was a delayed crop and shortage of seeds, increasing the prices threefold.
The delayed kharif harvest has come at the time of the late kharif harvest. In fact, agriculture officials are unable to draw a line between the area and production of the kharif and the late kharif crop, harvested in October-November and January-February respectively.
Thus, when the daily arrivals at the marketyard increased from a meagre 900-1,000 quintals in October-November, to a whopping 10,000 quintals a day in the third week of December, prices began falling.
On December 21, when the average wholesale prices fell to Rs 1,000 per quintal, the local organisation of farmers and labourers, the Shetkari Mazdoor Sanghatana, demanded that the export ban on onions be lifted to ease the situation. It also announced a dharna and a bandh in Lasalgaon on January 5 to demand that the price level be maintained at a minimum of Rs 500 per quintal.
However, prices plummeted sooner than expected as arrivals touched 18,000 quintals on December 28. The next day, as prices dipped to an average of Rs 651 per quintal, farmers staged a rasta roko at Vinchur. On December 30, the arrivals at Lasalgaon peaked to 21,000 quintals, forcing prices down to an average of Rs 440 per quintal, prompting farmers to halt auctions and come out on the streets.
Sensing an opportunity to consolidate the party8217;s position in view of the forthcoming Assembly polls, Nashik MP Madhavrao Patil of the Congress arrived in Lasalgaon, offering his leadership to the agitating farmers. He demanded the lifting of the export ban on the commodity and fixing of prices at Rs 500 per quintal.
Taking the cue from him, his party colleagues Gopalrao Gulve president of the district unit of the Congress Shirish Kotwal and others not only led rasta rokos at Chandwad December 31, Niphad January 1 and Yeola January 3, but also upped the demand for support price from Rs 500 per quintal to Rs 1,000 per quintal and still later to Rs 1,500 per quintal.
The farmers8217; demand however does not take into account the market position.
The lifting of the export ban will serve a limited purpose as not more than 12 to 15 per cent of the onions grown are exported. For instance, in 1996-97, of the annual yield of 41 lakh tonnes in the country, only five lakh tonnes were exported.
The plea to maintain the price level at more than Rs 500 per quintal also appears ineffectual as it would entail sharing of the burden of losses by the state and the Centre equally.
Consumers might argue that the farmer made a pretty packet when prices hovered around Rs 4,000 per quintal and hence should bear the cost of fluctuation in prices. But the farmers point out that most of the profits made over the past four months went to the traders who had stored the onions bought last summer. The prices last summer were around Rs 800-1,000 per quintal which shot up to Rs 4,000 per quintal in the last week of October.
With the late kharif harvest due in a fortnight and the major Rabi crop to flood the market in April-May, only the politicians and the traders have reason to celebrate.
