RAJSHAHI, Nov 28: Hundreds of onion farmers of Durgapur, Bagmara (Taherpur), Mohanpur, Paba, Charghat and Puthia upazilas of the district have become disappointed over the low market prices.
Sources said the growers have started to sow seed-onions in their fields again with an expectation to get fair prices of the spice crop in the next season.
Onion cultivation is popular in the district. Favourable climate, easy-term loan facility and good market demand have lured the farmers to grow the item on a vast tract of land.
Sources said farmers got a good yield this season, but they could not make a good profit for low market prices.
Agriculture Extension Department of Rajshahi, however, apprehended, the cultivation of onion would be less than 60 thousand hectares this year in compared to last year in the district.
Onion traders at Baneswar haat under Puthia upazila said onion prices remained low throughout the year. The main cause of low price of onion was the importing of duty free onion from India and other countries and smuggling of those from India, informed Golam Mostafa, an onion trader at Taherpur haat.
Golam Mostafa, Hafizur Rahman, Abdul Malek and Deen Mohammad of Mohanpur said Mohanpur, Durgapur and Taherpur are famous for producing onions and last year an increased number of farmers had planted onions because of getting a satisfactory price of onion during previous years.
He said despite a good production, the market price of onions throughout the year was low. Rajshahi Krishi Unnayn Bank's special loan on two percent return for oil-seed and spices attracted many farmers in their area to cultivate onion and other spices.
Golam Mostafa who is an onion trader and farmer alike informed, he himself took a loan of Tk 20,000 to plant onion in his land.
Nazrul Islam, another farmer from Sakoa village of Bagmara also took the same amount of loan for cultivating onion.
Nazrul Islam said, he planted onion of Tora variety and after getting the yield, he hoped to earn a good amount of money by selling those.
But, the onion price remained less than Tk 35 per kg (Tk 1,300 a maund) and he incurred a huge loss this year. He said, he would again plant onion on his field next year but he is also anxious of the price of onion then.
Agriculture Extension Department sources in Rajshahi said, there was a satisfactory production of onion this year and the price has also come down.
Advance-yielding onion has already been planted in many fields of Rajshahi, Pabna, Taherpur, Ishwardi, Bagmara and Suzanagar and all of the fields look healthy so far.
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