Amit Shah To Chair High-Level Meeting On Maharashtra Onion Crisis, Sugar Sector Challenges

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Union Home Minister Amit Shah will chair a high-level meeting in New Delhi on Wednesday to address the growing crisis facing Maharashtra’s onion growers and cooperative sugar industry.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Deputy Chief Ministers Eknath Shinde & Sunetra Pawar, senior Ministers, legislators and cooperative sector representatives will attend the meeting.

The discussions come as falling onion prices and rising production costs put pressure on Maharashtra’s rural economy and sugar cooperatives.

Senior leaders, including Chhagan Bhujbal, Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil and Shivendraraje Bhosale, will also join the meeting.

Despite a bumper harvest, onion growers in Nashik, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar and parts of Marathwada continue to face severe losses after wholesale prices crashed below production costs in several APMCs.

In markets such as Lasalgaon, Satana and Paithan, low-quality onions sold for as little as 50 paise to Re 1 per kilogram, while better-quality produce fetched only Rs 12 to Rs 15 per kilogram.

According to official estimates, onion cultivation expanded significantly during the 2025–26 season, resulting in the production of nearly 170 lakh metric tonnes.

Farmers stated that production costs remain between Rs 18 and Rs 20 per kilogram, making current market rates unsustainable.

The ongoing West Asia conflict and rising freight charges have disrupted onion exports and reduced access to key overseas markets.

Following farmer protests, the Centre raised NAFED’s onion procurement price from Rs 12.35 to Rs 15.80 per kilogram.

Farmers continue to demand Rs 30 per kilogram as a minimum support price and compensation for earlier losses.

The meeting will also discuss challenges facing Maharashtra’s sugar sector, where rising production costs, pending farmer dues and the temporary sugar export ban continue to pressure sugar mills.

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Anamika Agarwala