Amid growing discontent over the Centre’s move to ban export of onions, former chief minister and Leader of Opposition Devendra Fadnavis asked Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal to withdraw the decision.
“I have written to him. We also spoke on phone and I reiterated the demand to withdraw the ban,” Mr. Fadnavis said on Wednesday.
The day also saw protests by the Congress in Pune, Thane and Solapur demanding withdrawal of the export ban. Sensing the rising discontent, the Bharatiya Janata Party’s senior leaders are also demanding a roll back.
Mr. Fadnavis said, there is a huge demand for onions from Maharashtra abroad and it ensures good income to farmers here. “They will be impacted due to the ban on exports. I am hopeful that you will take appropriate decision in this regard,” said Mr. Fadnavis.
On Tuesday, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar too had met Mr. Goyal in new Delhi and demanding withdrawal of the ban.
Will follow up: CM
Meanwhile, the State cabinet, at its meeting on Wednesday, decided to write to the Union government on this issue. Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray said the State will follow up with the Centre to seek withdrawal of the ban.
In 2018-19, Maharashtra exported 21.83 lakh metric tonnes of onion, while in 2019-20 it was 18.50 lakh mt. At present four lakh mt onion is lying at the Jawaharlal Nehru Port for export while 500 trucks are standing for further instructions at Bangladesh and Nepal borders.
‘No help from Centre’
Criticising the Narendra Modi-led Union government, State unit Congress president and Revenue Minister Balasaheb Thorat said while Maharashtra is extending a helping hand to farmers suffering losses due to floods or heavy rains, the Centre has not provided any help.
“The decision by the Centre to import milk powder resulted in thousands of tonnes of milk powder lying with the dairy farmers, resulting in a drop in milk prices. Just as when onions were fetching a good price in the market, a decision to ban exports was taken which has led to the price of onion crashing by ₹700-800 per quintal,” he said, adding that the agitation will continue till the decision is rolled back.
In Pune, the Congress city president Ramesh Bagwe said despite the lockdown, farmers produced onions and when they were about to get good returns, the Centre banned its export. “This is injustice and the Centre should withdraw the decision as soon as possible,” he said.
(With PTI inputs)
