Diesel scarcity stalls transport from largest onion market, supply to Mumbai hit; traders threaten boycott from May 25

The Lasalgaon Merchants Association (LMA) has written to the APMC, demanding immediate resolution of the issue and warning of a traders’ boycott of daily auctions starting May 25

Pune/Nashik/Vashi: Fuel scarcity due to the ongoing conflict in west Asia has hit Lasalgaon – the country’s largest onion wholesale market – hard, with transportation of the famed ‘Nashik Red’ or ‘Niphad Red’ and other varieties coming to a halt due to unavailability of trucks.

Wholesale onion prices at the Vashi APMC have shot up from ₹10-12 per kg to ₹15 per kg (HT Photo)

Usually, about 50 onion-laden trucks are dispatched daily from Lasalgaon, located around 56 km from Nashik, traders said. With transport at a standstill, traders were considering abstaining from onion auctions fearing heavy financial losses, they said.

The Lasalgaon Merchants Association (LMA) has written to the APMC, demanding immediate resolution of the issue and warning of a traders’ boycott of daily auctions starting May 25.

The effect of fuel shortage was being felt at the Vashi Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC) market too, which receives onions from major onion-producing regions in Maharashtra such as Nashik, Pune, Sangamner and Nagpur. Onion traders at the market reported a sharp decline in incoming vehicles over the past few days due to fuel shortage.

“Earlier, 100-120 onion vehicles used to arrive daily. But now, arrivals have now reduced to 70-80 vehicles,” said Ashok Karpe, an onion trader at the Vashi APMC market. “Transportation costs have also increased from around ₹1,100 per tonne to ₹1,400- ₹1,500 per tonne.”

The rise in freight expenses, coupled with reduced supply, has pushed up wholesale onion prices at Vashi APMC from ₹10-12 per kg to ₹15 per kg.

Traders threaten boycott

The Lasalgaon Merchants Association (LMA) has written to the APMC, demanding immediate resolution of the issue and warning of a traders’ boycott of daily auctions at Lasalgaon starting May 25.

LMA secretary Pravin Kadam told HT that transporters are facing difficulties arranging trucks for ferrying onions and foodgrains because diesel supply has become erratic.

“Our feedback is that transporters are not getting the required amount of fuel for their vehicles. Consequently, the supply of trucks has become extremely low; they cannot provide 10 trucks a day. We want the APMC authorities to intervene and resolve this issue. If not, it would not be prudent for the traders to participate in the auctions,” he said.

Kadam also said that the few consignments being dispatched are taking longer than usual to reach their destinations, leading to issues with freshness and rot.

Over 250 traders in Lasalgaon are involved in daily auctioning of onions and foodgrains. If they proceed with their decision to boycott auctions, the farmers will bear the brunt. They would not be able to sell their produce in the mandi, resulting in huge financial losses. Many farmers lack proper storage facilities which could cause the produce to rot.

Nashik-based transporter Bharat Shinde cited the erratic availability of diesel at most petrol pumps as the reason for not providing trucks.

“Some of the transporters are not ready to ferry consignments to other parts of the country because they fear their vehicles might get stuck,” he said.

A Lasalgaon APMC functionary admitted that truck availability has decreased. “We have informed our senior authorities that the LMA has decided not to participate in the auction from May 25,” the office-bearer added.

Significantly, a team from the Department of Consumer Affairs (DoCA) under the Union ministry is currently in Nashik to review preparations by two central agencies - Nafed and NCCF - to procure 2 lakh tons of onions from farmers. This is part of the Centre’s initiative to create buffer stock and also stabilise wholesale onion prices.

Meanwhile, Nashik district collector Ayush Prasad directed the local authorities of the two agencies to carry out the procurement process transparently, an official from the collectorate office said.

As the situation is fluid, stakeholders are currently adopting a ‘wait and watch’ policy. Traders await a positive reply from the APMC before May 25. The committee is pinning its hopes on the district administration to resolve the fuel issue plaguing the transporters, so that onion-laden trucks can travel unhindered on the roads once again.