Market prices dishearten Pabna, Magura onion cultivators

Roving Correspondent | Published: May 08, 2018 21:08:40

PABNA, May 08: A good number of onion growers of Chatmohor upazila in the district are worried due to low market price of the newly-harvested crop.
Sources said onion growers of the area have achieved a bumper yield this season. Now they are incurring average Tk 5,000 to Tk 6,000 loss from the crop produced in bigha of land.
The onion, produced in fertile basin of Chalan Beel area, is smaller in size but is of better quality than the hybrid ones. The high demand of local produced onion is increasing but deceasing market price dishearten the growers.
Each maund of onion is being sold at Tk 600 to Tk 700 in the local market.
To produce onion on a bigha of land, farmers had to spend over Tk 40,000 to Tk 42,000 but now they are selling the same quantity at Tk 35000.
The Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) official sources said around 230 farmers in the area cultivated onion on around 30 hectares of land this year.
Upazila agriculture officer of DAE Hasan Rashid Hossainy said a vast tract of land around the Chalan Beel is used for onion farming every year.
Meanwhile, our Magura correspondent adds: Onion farmers of the district alleged that they do not get fair prices of their produce this season.
Sources said the newly-harvested onion has started appearing in the local market. But farmers are disappointed over the price gap between the wholesale and retail markets. They claimed retail price is much higher than that of the wholesale one.
A good number of cultivators said middlemen syndicate is dominating the district's onion market. That is why they are not getting the fair prices.
The Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE), Magura, sources said a total of 6,635 hectares of land were brought under the farming of onion and some 92,890 tonnes of onion have been produced.
Onion farmer Atiur Rahman of Lakshikandar village under Magura Sadar said he has recently sold all of his produce at Tk 20 per kg in the wholesale market. The spice crop is being sold at Tk 44 per kg in the retail market, but the wholesale rate is still the same.
Local trader Tilam Hossein said, "We are now selling the imported onion. Onion price is high in the market."
District marketing officer Mr Jakir denied the allegation of syndicate. "Stern action will be taken if we get any information in this connection", he added.