In the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly, Marketing Minister Jaykumar Rawal clarified the position regarding procurement of onions and farmers’ pending payments in the State. He confirmed that the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (NAFED) and the National Cooperative Consumers’ Federation of India (NCCF) procured onions in substantial quantities between June and August 2025 under the Centre’s Price Stabilisation Fund scheme.
The Minister stated that farmers staged a protest outside the NAFED office in Nashik on January 5, 2026. He clarified that pending dues amounting to approximately Rs 20 crore relate to NCCF at the Nashik level, and the process of disbursement is underway. While most farmers received payments within the stipulated timeframe, some payments were delayed due to administrative procedural reasons.
He further acknowledged that excessive rainfall during the kharif and late kharif seasons adversely affected onion cultivation and production. Since onion is a perishable crop, it is not covered under the Minimum Support Price framework.
The State Government had requested the removal of the 20% export duty, which was withdrawn by the Centre on March 22, 2025. The State has also urged the Centre to increase RoDTEP export incentives for onion exporters from 1.9% to 4% to help stabilise prices and support farmers.
