In a letter addressed to Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Patil called for an immediate guaranteed procurement price of Rs 2,000 per quintal for onions, along with a subsidy of Rs 1,500 per quintal to offset severe financial losses being incurred by growers. He stated that farmers across major onion-producing regions, including Nashik, Pune, Solapur, and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, are experiencing significant economic distress due to market prices falling well below production costs.
Patil highlighted that onion cultivation has become increasingly expensive, with rising input costs for seeds, fertilisers, pesticides, and labour placing additional pressure on farmers. Despite these escalating expenses, he said growers are unable to secure remunerative prices, resulting in mounting debt and worsening rural financial instability. He further noted that many farmers are struggling to recover even their basic production costs due to weak demand and volatile market conditions.
The former Maharashtra minister stressed that lakhs of farming households are affected by price instability and uncertainty in agricultural markets, intensifying the scale of the agrarian distress. He urged immediate state intervention to prevent further deterioration of the situation among onion cultivators.
Patil also demanded large-scale government procurement of onions through the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (NAFED), stating that such intervention would help stabilise prices and provide immediate relief to affected farmers. He additionally proposed a group subsidy ranging between Rs 500 and Rs 700 per quintal to support growers during the ongoing downturn.
In his appeal, Patil called for subsidies on chemical fertilisers to be directly transferred into farmers’ bank accounts through the Direct Benefit Transfer system to ensure timely and transparent assistance. He also criticised frequent changes in India’s onion export policy, stating that repeated restrictions and reversals have damaged the credibility of Indian onions in international markets and created instability for both traders and farmers. He urged the formulation of a stable, long-term export policy in coordination with the Central Government.
Beyond financial measures, Patil demanded strengthened storage infrastructure in rural areas, including government subsidies for modern onion storage facilities as well as traditional ventilated storage structures used by farmers. He also sought the provision of high-quality onion seeds at concessional rates to reduce cultivation costs and improve productivity.
The demands come at a time when onion price volatility and agrarian distress continue to remain politically and economically sensitive issues in Maharashtra, one of India’s largest onion-producing states.
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