Small onions have been cultivated in few areas in and around Coimbatore. This crop is abundantly grown in Perur and Thondamuthur areas in Coimbatore. The crop is planted during the months of May and June and will be ready for harvest after 120 days. However, this year three months after harvest, the farmers are unable to sell their produce due to low price that is prevailing in the market, This will result in the onions decaying putting the farmers at a loss.
Gopal, a farmer from Kalampalayam near Theethipalayam in Perur in Coimbatore said “My family depends on agriculture. We have been into farming for generations now. We don’t know any other means of earning money in order to make ends meet. We have 2.5 acres of land. We planted small onions this season. The crop has been planted in about 2500 acres of land in nearby villages.”
Bumper Crop
Apart from Coimbatore small onions have been cultivated in Ottanchathiram, Namakkal, Thuraiyur and Palladam. This year small onions were planted in a many pockets in Coimbatore. The yield of small onions has increased. Owing to its size, farmers share that they get small returns while selling this crop.
“We incur an expenditure of 1 to 1.25 lakhs per acre, for cultivating the small onions. If we sell the onions at a price of Rs.40 per kg we will get a good profit. But it is currently fetching a price of only Rs.7 to Rs. 15. Farmers who have cultivated onions are facing a difficult situation due to the low prices for the onions.” shares this farmer.
Decay
“The onions that are harvested should be sold before Diwali. However, even after Diwali 6 tonnes of onions lie in my home as I am unable to sell them for a good rate. We can store these onions only for up to 100 days. After 100 days the onions will start to grow. Thus, all farmers will be at a loss.” this farmer adds.
Solution
According to this farmer, help should come from the Government. “The government should make efforts to export the onions when there is a bumper crop. This will save farmers from running into a loss. If the onions that I have decays, I will incur a loss of up to 3 lakhs. We will be also without any money for the next crop. In present situation I am unable to do anything” he said.
The government must come ahead and provide a solution. If we forget farming, we will have lasting economic problems. The future generation may not know what farming is. The government should take steps to compensate the farmers for their losses or else should help them to market their produce at a good price.