Onion farmers block Mumbai-Agra Highway as MVA joins agitation over prices, MSP demand

Hundreds of onion farmers, joined by leaders of the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), blocked the Mumbai-Agra National Highway in Maharashtra's Nashik district on Tuesday, escalating their agitation over falling onion prices and demanding a higher government procurement rate, subsidy support and a Minimum Support Price (MSP) for the crop.

The protest, organised under the banner of the Kanda Utpadak Shetkari Kranti Mahamorcha, brought traffic to a standstill in Chandwad town before police intervened and detained several protesters, including prominent opposition leaders.

Among those detained were NCP (SP) MLA Rohit Pawar, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Ambadas Danve and Maharashtra Congress president Harshwardhan Sapkal, who had led a rally to the protest site on a bullock cart.

Police said traffic movement was disrupted for a considerable period and alleged that some protesters attempted to deflate the tyres of stranded vehicles during the blockade.

Farmers reject procurement price

Addressing the gathering before his detention, Pawar criticised the government's procurement price for onions and said cultivators were unable to recover production costs.

“The government has declared a procurement price of Rs 1,580 per quintal for onions. Farmers are unhappy with this. They should get at least Rs 24 per kg for their produce,” he said.

Claiming that the state government was uncomfortable with the growing agitation, Pawar added, “The government is afraid of our movement. The chief minister, deputy chief minister and other ministers are going to Delhi on Wednesday. We will have to wait and see what happens.”

The protest comes amid mounting discontent among onion growers in Nashik, India's largest onion-producing belt, where farmers have repeatedly complained about sharp price fluctuations, export restrictions and delays in procurement.

Melody toffees distributed during protest

In a symbolic gesture that drew attention, protesters distributed Melody toffees among farmers while taking a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

“Prime Minister Modi recently gifted Melody toffees to Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. The shares of the company rose after that. He should gift onions too, so that onion prices also rise,” some protesters remarked.

MSP, subsidy and NAFED probe among key demands

The agitating farmers have demanded an MSP of Rs 3,000 per quintal for onions, a subsidy of Rs 1,500 per quintal on produce already sold, withdrawal of restrictions affecting onion exports and a detailed inquiry into alleged irregularities in procurement by the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India.

Sapkal alleged that onion cultivators in several parts of the state were being forced to sell their produce at prices as low as Rs 200-300 per quintal.

“The Centre and the state government have failed to protect farmers' interests,” he claimed.

He further alleged that despite announcing procurement operations, the Maharashtra government had not initiated purchases on the ground and demanded that procurement be carried out exclusively through Agricultural Produce Market Committees (APMCs).

MVA vows to continue agitation

The Congress leader said rising input costs and inflation had made cultivation increasingly unsustainable for farmers who were not receiving remunerative prices for their produce.

He asserted that the Congress and its MVA allies would continue the agitation until onion growers were assured a guaranteed and remunerative price.

The protest marks the latest flashpoint in Maharashtra's onion economy, where price crashes and policy interventions have frequently triggered farmer unrest in one of the country's most politically sensitive agricultural sectors.