Onion prices surge as fewer farmers sow crop

Shiv Kumar
Tribune News Service
Mumbai, August 22

Less than a year after wholesale prices of onions crashed to less than one rupee a kg, the bulb is seeing a sudden spurt in prices.

According to information available from Lasalgaon near Nashik—the country's main onion market—prices are hovering between Rs 2200 and Rs 2400 a quintal.

A further rise in price is also a possibility in the coming weeks.

"Many farmers didn't sow onion in the winter as prices crashed. Moreover, severe flooding in different parts of Maharashtra has damaged whatever crop had been sown," says Sambhaji Pawar, a trader at the Lasalgaon market.

Wholesale onion prices began rising from around Rs 4 to 5 per kg in January to Rs 14 in July before nearly doubling in August. 

According to officials from the Agriculture Produce Marketing Committee Market (APMC) at Lasalgaon, the number of trucks carrying onions has fallen sharply over the past few weeks.

However, according to officials here, several farmers are harvesting the monsoon crop sown in early June to cash in on the rising prices.

"The onions which are coming in now are smaller and not mature enough," adds Pawar.

Onion is planted thrice a year in Maharashtra. 

The kharif crop planted in June and harvested in September, the late kharif crop sown shortly after the main crop is harvested and the rabi crop which is sown in January and February. 

Last year, only a handful of farmers planted onions during the rabi season since the kharif and late kharif crops entered the markets when prices had crashed.

Data from the state agriculture department shows that onion was cultivated over only 18,000 hectares of land during the rabi season, earlier this year, as against more than 80,000 hectares in previous years.

Traders say, onion prices would remain high till after Diwali—when the fresh onion crop from Karnataka hits the market.