Onion price crashes to 30 paise/ kg in Neemuch

Wholesale prices of onion have crashed to as low as 30 paise per kg in Neemuch district of Madhya Pradesh after a bumper harvest and low demand, leaving farmers in tears. Neemuch is a big onion market in the region.

"Because of a bumper crop, onion is being sold at 30-50 paise per kg while only a few days ago it commanded a price of Rs 15-20 per kg in the local market," Dayaram Patidar, a farmer from Diken, said. "We are forced to throw away the crop in the garbage as we are not even recovering the money spent on transportation from fields to the mandi," Patidar said. Every day nearly 5000 bags of onion arrive in Neemuch mandi. Today some 4,000 bags were off-loaded, but there are no buyers, he said. "We were hoping that we will get at least Rs 20-30 per kg, but at this price it is really difficult for us to survive," he said. Onion trader Satyanarayan Rathi said because of increase in supply, prices have plummeted. Krishi Upaj Mandi director Rajendra Singh Tomar also blamed the bumper harvest and declining demand for the fall in prices.