NASHIK, June 9: Auction of onions at the Lasalgaon wholesale market in Niphad taluka came to a standstill today, following an indefinite strike by traders, to protest against the increase in levy by the Mathadi board. The strike is likely to hit the onion growers as well as the consumers, both.The local mathadi board hiked its levy from 17 to 25 per cent from June, triggering off protests both from the Mathadi workers as well as the traders. The workers had struck work on June 6 to protest against the levy, leading a rasta roko by onion growers, whose produce had been stranded at the marketyard for want of auction.The continous decline in the prices of onions over the past two months has upset the onion growers. On April 15, farmers had blocked Mumbai-Agra national highway at Pimpalgaon-Baswant, when prices of onions had crashed. The recent transport strike, holidays and the hike in the Mathadi levy have added to their woes.On June 4, the Shetkari Sanghatana held a meeting of onion growers at Niphad and threatened to block entry of ruling politicians and to hit them with onions if they did. The Sanghatana demanded immediate intervention of the state government in the onion issue and threatened to launch an agitation to focus attention on the woes of onion farmers. The prices of onions, which were in the range of Rs 300 per quintal about two months ago, have crashed to Rs 50 to Rs 150 per quintal in the wholesale marketyards. The break-even price level is Rs 200 per quintal and whenever prices plummet below Rs 200, farmers suffer losses.Nashik district has about 24,000 hectares under onion cultivation producing about four lakh tonnes annually in three seasons.
