It was the intervening period between the morning and late afternoon auction at Shri Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Swatantra Kanda Bazaar Aawaar (SCSMSKBA), Lasalgaon in the Nashik district. Upon enquiring about the onion prices for August 20 (Tuesday) and the highest bid, Kantilal Gomare, a security guard at the SCSMSKBA asked this reporter to leave or “the shetkaris (farmers) will assault you and break your camera”. If you want to even enter the compound you need to get permission from the chairman of the Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC), he said.
Farmers in Lasalgaon have been upset with the media. They hold the media responsible for sensationalising the rising the prices of onions, thus hampering their income.
“This is the only chance they have to make money and by putting the rising prices in the spotlight, the government is building pressure to bring down the prices. Thus, the anger against the media,” explained an onion exporter.
On the other hand, an onion grower rued, “Where is the media when onion prices fall so ridiculously that whether we throw it or sell it makes no difference?”
Nashik is the largest producer of onions in the country, and the only one, which grows onions thrice a year. What’s more, Lasalgaon APMC is the largest in Asia Pacific. In such a scenario it becomes intriguing what has set onion prices soaring like never before this year.
At `4,875 per quintal on August 16, the onion prices hit an all time high in the country, making it a household concern and a Parliament debate, too.
The big question remains: What has caused this phenomenal rise in onion prices? Farmers, traders, exporters and APMC officials consistently attribute the price rise to the poor rainfall and drought-like situation in the past two years.
“The rain had been abysmal this year and the year before, which has led to the shortage of onions this year. But, the fresh crop is due to arrive in the market,” said Sanjay Sanap, as he worked in the field. Mr Sanap sold his onion produce in the range of `1,200 to `3,900 this year. When asked if he had benefited from the soaring prices or the traders did. “I did make money and recovered my cost. I’m satisfied. I don’t know about traders. They are businessmen, they know the market better so they must be making more,” said Mr Sanap.
According to Lasalgaon APMC statistics, the onion production in 2012-13 has fallen by approximately 25 per cent. “We record the onion produce from March 1 to August 14. So between March 1, 2012 and August 14, 2012 the production was 19,44,923 quintals, while in the same period in 2013 it came down to 15,81,640 quintals; a decrease of approximately four lakh quintals,” said N.S. Wadhwane, accountant APMC, Lasalgaon.
Just like the farmers, Mr Wadhwane is also critical of the media’s approach to the onion prices. It is undeniable that there had been a water shortage; even drinking water was scarce, let alone water for irrigation. The lack of water not only reduced the produce, but also increased the cost of whatever little could be produced. The ever-increasing prices of fuel hit farmers badly given that electricity supply is available only at night.
“Look at the circumstances in which a farmer produces onions, especially with the acute water crisis. There are so many additional costs. How is he supposed to recover the cost? And shouldn’t he make an extra buck for his family and future?” asked Mr Wadhwane.
He further points out, “A multinational decides the price of its products, and we buy certain items because they bear a certain brand name. In the same manner, shouldn’t farmers too have the right to decide the price of their produce?”
A widely-held notion has been that with the rising prices it is not the farmers who benefit, but the middlemen. While it may have been true until a few years ago, today even farmers make anything from a reasonable to an incredible amount.
“It is no longer true that traders make money at the farmers’ cost. They are primary beneficiaries in today’s market. Now every farmer has storage facilities of his own. He stores the produce and waits for prices to rise, or waits for prices to reach the mark he thinks will fetch him maximum benefit before it falls and then brings the produce to the market. Earlier, they had to sell because they had no storage facility. In today’s market dynamics, both farmers and traders benefit equally,” explained Tushar Narayan Ahir, an onion exporter.
By and large, this is the first time most people in the business recall seeing prices of onions go up so high in recent times. The last time this happened was in 1998 when onion prices touched the `60 per kg mark and it cost the the ruling Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) four states, including Sushma Swaraj losing the chair of Delhi chief minister.
“I have been in this field for almost 15 years now. This is after a long time that onion prices have skyrocketed in this manner. I have stopped exporting. Orders have been on hold for a month. However, it is a matter of another 20-25 days and prices will start normalising as the new stocks hit
the market,” said Prakash Motilal Dayma, an onion exporter and chairman of the Nashik Merchants Cooperative Bank Ltd.