Government urged to ban onions import

SAR-I-PUL CITY (Pajhwok): Some farmers in northern Sar-i-Pul province have expressed their concerns over the low price of onions in the market and asked the government to stop onion import from the neighbouring countries.

These farmers got together in Sar-i-Pul City, the provincial capital, and asked the government to explore local market for onion in order to improve its rate.

Abdul Sahkour, one of the farmers, said: “We spend money on irrigation and urea to cultivate onions and grow them.”

He said by the time of onions harvest, its import from the neighboring countries also start and supplied to the market at low rate therefore the price of locally produced onion dropped as well.

He said: “We ask the government to stop the import of onions from neighboring countries or raise the tariff so that our onions can be sold in the markets of the country at a reasonable price.”

Bismillah, another local farmer from the Bashkapa locality, asked relevant authorities to manage local markets according to the interest of local farmers because onion cultivation generated work opportunities for many youth.

He said if farmers not supported and their products not sold at good rate most youth would chose migration.

Pacha, another farmer from the Syedabad district, said: “One bag of fertilizer cost 6,000 afs, one kilogram onion seed cost 7,000 afs, solar system cost 400,000 afs so we asked the government to provide reasonable market for our products.”

He said onions from neighboring countries are sold in the country’s markets, but domestic products rotted and perished due to low price.

He said currently seven kilograms of onion accounted for 100 afs and if this rate surged to 150 afs then farmers would not suffer.

Mufti Abdul Shakir, head of the provincial Commerce and Industry Department, said the problems regarding the sale of agriculture product and its market had been shared with the Ministry of Commerce and Industries and hoped this problem would be addressed.

Agriculture Department Director Abdul Qadir Wahdat said onion price dropped when Salang Pass was closed but after it’s reopening the onion rate increased.

He had no information regarding the import of onion from the neighbouring countries and said in order to address this problem permanently the construction of a large cold store was suggested to the central government.

According to the Agriculture Department this year onion cultivated on 850 hectares land which produced 20,000 tonnes of onion.

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