00:00 If some people feel the present onion prices are unreasonable, they should stop eating
00:07 onions for the next 3-4 months.
00:11 These are the words of Minister and Shinde Shiusena leader Dada Bhuse.
00:17 Let's understand the full story but before that if you are watching this on Facebook
00:22 do like our page and if you are watching this on YouTube do subscribe to HW News English.
00:28 Amid ongoing protest by farmers and traders against the Central Government's decision
00:34 to levy a 40% export duty on onions, Maharashtra Minister Dada Bhuse has stirred controversy
00:45 with his statement.
00:46 "When you use a vehicle worth Rs 10 lakh, you can buy a produce at a higher rate by
00:53 Rs 10 or Rs 20 than the retail rate.
00:57 Those who cannot afford to buy onion, it would make no difference if they do not eat it for
01:04 2-4 months," Mr Bhuse had said.
01:08 Mr Bhuse also said that even though the imposition of export duty was intended to curb rising
01:15 prices and stabilizing domestic supplies, it should have been executed in a more coordinated
01:21 manner.
01:22 The government imposed the 40% export duty on August 19 in order to stem price increase
01:29 in the staple.
01:31 On Monday, farmers and traders shut down onion markets in Nashik, Asia's largest trading
01:38 centre for the vegetable.
01:40 They pledged not to buy or sell onions until the 40% export duty is lifted.
01:46 Today, Union Minister Piyush Goyal reassured the farmers that the government will initiate
01:52 the purchase of the additional 2 lakh ton onions for the buffer stock from onion farmers
01:59 in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and other areas.
02:03 The minister informed the farmers that they will be provided appropriate remuneration
02:08 for their produce and the government will purchase the onions at Rs 2,410 per quintal.
02:16 Earlier this year, a farmer in Maharashtra's Nashik district, furious for not getting the
02:22 right value for his produce, had set on fire his 1.5 acre onion farm.
02:29 Now why is that the government always remembers the farmers only during the elections?
02:35 According to the data provided by the Maharashtra government, 1023 farmers committed suicide
02:41 since the Shinde Fadnavis government came to power.
02:45 The major reason behind this rise in price is because Nashik reported multiple days of
02:51 hailstorms in March just when farmers had started their harvest.
02:57 Rough estimates say that this affected around 40% of onion crops, of which around 20% had
03:04 to be ploughed back in due to quality concerns.
03:08 Also, farmers who generally offload their rabi onions only post-June were forced to
03:15 do so from May itself because of quality concerns of the stored produce.
03:20 Therefore, the month of May saw increased arrivals which along with the imperial quality
03:26 saw a price crash.
03:29 The Maharashtra government had then announced a special scheme to support onion growers
03:34 with a subsidy of Rs 300 per quintal.
03:38 Most farmers said the scheme is yet to reach them.
03:42 As a result, the supply-demand mismatch has resulted in the present price rise.
03:49 Let's now come back to Minister Dada Bose's statement.
03:52 When you use a vehicle worth Rs 10 lakh, you can buy a produce at a higher rate by Rs 10
03:57 or 20.
03:58 Those who cannot afford to buy onions, it would make no difference if they do not eat
04:03 it for 2-4 months.
04:05 Now onion is a very essential vegetable.
04:08 And be it breakfast, lunch or dinner, onion is a very important ingredient.
04:14 It's not a privilege to consume onion.
04:16 Kande pohe is a very traditional Maharashtrian cuisine.
04:20 It is consumed by people from the lowest income groups.
04:24 Onion bhajiyas are consumed even by daily wage workers.
04:28 Such statements are bizarre and insensitive.
04:31 In 2019, when opposition leader questioned Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on surging
04:38 onion prices, she had responded saying, "I don't eat a lot of onions and garlic.
04:43 So don't worry.
04:45 I come from a family that doesn't care much for onions.
04:49 A voter expects solutions from lawmakers, not such responses for their problems."
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