Sat Oct 25 15:37:35 UTC 2025: Summary:
Farmers in the Dharwad region of North Karnataka, India, are protesting the low prices of onions caused by recent heavy rains. These rains damaged the crop, lowered its quality, and caused fungal infections, significantly reducing yields. Farmers are demanding a minimum support price of ₹5,000 per quintal for onions and compensation for crop losses, as local onion varieties fetch as little as ₹100 per quintal at the Hubballi APMC yard. The situation is exacerbated by the fact that green gram procurement centers are not yet functional. The abundance of onions in other parts of India has also suppressed prices in the Hubballi market.
News Article:
Karnataka Onion Farmers Protest Plunging Prices, Demand Government Intervention
HUBBALLI, October 25, 2025 – Farmers in the Dharwad district of North Karnataka staged a dramatic protest today at the Amaragol Agricultural Produce Marketing Committee (APMC) yard in Hubballi, dumping bags of onions on the ground to highlight their distress over plummeting prices.
The farmers, already reeling from losses due to recent incessant rains that damaged green gram and black gram crops, are now struggling with the devastating impact of the same rains on their onion yields. The heavy precipitation has not only reduced the quantity of the harvest but also significantly degraded the quality, leading to widespread fungal infections and a drastic fall in prices.
“The government’s apathy towards our plight is unacceptable,” declared Shivanand Karigar, former vice president of Dharwad Zilla Panchayat, who led the protest. “We demand a minimum support price of ₹5,000 per quintal for our onions, and ₹50,000 per acre in compensation for the losses suffered due to these devastating rains.”
Farmers lamented that the local onion variety fetches as little as ₹100 per quintal at the Hubballi APMC yard, one of the region’s largest onion markets. Last year, the same variety sold for between ₹3,000 and ₹4,000. The Pune and Nashik varieties are faring somewhat better, but prices are still significantly lower than last year. The farmers blame the low prices on the abundance of onions in other parts of the country, which has reduced demand for Hubballi’s produce.
Adding to their woes, farmers also reported that procurement centers for purchasing green gram, another key crop damaged by the rains, are yet to become operational.
The situation underscores the vulnerability of Indian farmers to unpredictable weather patterns and the need for robust government support to mitigate the impact of natural disasters and ensure fair prices for agricultural produce. The protesting farmers have vowed to continue their demonstrations until their demands are met.
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