Lok Sabha Question No. 587 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2017-12-19
Subject: Rise in Onion Prices
Ministry: AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE
Asked by: ADVOCATE NARENDRA KESHAV SAWAIKAR, GOPALAKRISHNAN CHINNARAJ, GOKARAJU GANGA RAJU, SISIR KUMAR ADHIKARI

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, COOPERATION AND FARMERS WELFARE

## LOK  SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.587

TO BE ANSWERED ON THE 19 TH   DECEMBER, 2017

## RISE IN ONION PRICES

587. ADV. NARENDRA KESHAV SAWAIKAR:

DR. C. GOPALAKRISHNAN:

DR. GOKARAJU GANGA RAJU:

SHRI SISIR KUMAR ADHIKARI:

Will the Minister of AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE कृ ष एवं कसान कयाण मंी be pleased to state:

- (a) whether it is a fact that onion exports fell 14% to 9.45 lakh tonnes in the current fiscal year and if so, the reasons therefor;
- (b) whether the Government is aware of rising prices of onion and tomato in the domestic market;
- (c) if  so,  whether  there is  a  gap between demand and supply of onion and tomato in the country;
- (d) whether it  is  also  true  that  on  the  one  hand  the  end  users/consumers are  purchasing onion at exorbitant price and on the other hand farmers are not getting remunerative price for onion due to which the farmers are throwing it on roads and the same is also getting rotten in the storage places; and
- (e) if so, the details thereof and the steps taken by the Government to provide remunerative prices  to  onion  and  tomato  farmers  and  make  them  available  at  a  reasonable  price  to consumers along  with  the  action  taken  by  the  Government  against  the  hoarders  of  onion  in various States?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE

कृ ष एवं कसान कयाण मंालय म राय मंी (SHRI  GAJENDRA SINGH SHEKHAWAT)

- (a): Export of onion in current fiscal year 2017-18  (April- September ) is 9.4 lakh tons against 11.6  lakh  tons  of  corresponding  period  of  pervious  year.    Export  of  an  item  is  influenced  by various external factors like global production, demand, international prices etc.
- (b) & (c): The prices of onion and tomato are closely monitored and there has been a raise in prices. However, the production of these commodities in the country is sufficient to meet the domestic demand .

(d) & (e): Price  of  perishable  agriculture  item  like  onion  and  tomato  may  increase  and decrease  due  various  reasons  such  as  production,  crop  seasonality,  unfavourable  weather conditions,  transportation  cost,  grading/sorting,  wastage  during  movement  etc.  The  following steps have been taken by the Government to provide remuernative prices of onion and tomato farmers and stabilize the prices in the market.

- I. Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare has approved the proposals of procurement of 6,51,000 Metric Ton (MT) onion in Madhya Pradesh and 20,000 MT in Rajasthan in view of the request received from the respective State Government. No such proposal from State Government for tomato has been received.
- II. Under Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH) scheme , farmers are mobilized into Farmer Producer Organization (FPOs) for aggregating and economies of scale. Efforts are being made to link FPOs to market by way of direct marketing farmer consumer markets / Apni Mandi and e-markets.
- III. Under MIDH , assistance is also provided for development of post harvest management and  marketing  infrastructure    such  as  cold  storage,  cold  room,  packing  &  grading houses, reefer vehicle, primary and wholesale market etc.
- IV. National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd.(NAFED) and Small Farmers Agri-Business Consortium (SFAC ) were directed to procure 10,000 MT and 2000 MT from onion producing region in November 2017.
- V. The onion procured by Government  is being retailed through SAFAL , NCCF and also through auction in mandies to improve availability and moderate prices.
- VI. Under  National  Agriculture  Market  (e-NAM)  scheme  launched  on  14.04.2016  by  the Government,  there  is  a  target  to  integrate  585  mandis  across  the  country  by  March, 2018. The scheme aims to create a National web based unified agri-marketing portal for inter  market  and  inter-state  trading  of  agri-produces.  As  on  14.12.2017,  470  markets across 14 States/UTs have been integrated with e-NAM portal.
- VII. Government  has  released  a  new  model  'The  Agricultural  Produce  and  Livestock Marketing  (Promotion  &  Facilitation)  Act,  2017'  on  24 th April,  2017  for  its  adoption  by States/Union Territories. There provisions  includes setting up of private markets, direct marketing, farmer-consumer markets, special commodity markets,  etc. so as to reduce the number of intermediaries between producer and buyer and increase the share of the farmer in consumer's rupee.

Government  has  extended  stock  limit  on  onion  up  to  31 st December,  2017  to  check hoarding of this commodity .

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