Nashik traders, who are still on strike in protest against the delisting of fruit and vegetables from the APMC Act, are urging the government to at least remove onions from the delisted products list.
Jaydatta Holkar, chairman of the Lasalgaon APMC said, "We tried to convince the traders, but they have refused to call off the strike. They have also surrendered their licences. The traders have also demanded to remove at least the onion from the delisted produces list."
Lasalgaon APMC, the country's largest wholesale onion market where nearly 15,000 quintals of onions are auctioned a day, wore a deserted look for the past nine days as the traders have gone on strike.
Nandakumar Daga, president of the Lasalgaon Onion Traders' Association, said, "The 6% commission will affect our business. There will be no commission if traders buy produce from farmers outside the APMCs. Then why should we procure produce from farmers in the APMCs."
On July 13, traders at all state APMCs, except district APMCs, called off their strike following a meeting with the government in Mumbai. On July 14, the Nashik APMC traders called off their strike, but traders at the other 14 APMCs in the district are still on strike. Earlier, farmers would pay 6% commission to agents who facilitate financial transactions between traders and farmers. But as per the government decision, traders or purchasers have to pay commission instead of farmers.
Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com
