eNAM Crash, Traders Syndicate, Storage Upset Kurnool Onion Farmers

Kurnool: Onion farmers of Kurnool district are facing severe storage issues with Kurnool city’s markets overwhelmed with this season's bumper harvest. A staggering 2.52 lakh quintals of produce has reached the market, against last year’s 52,000 quintals.

The harvest comes to the Kurnool market yard not just from the Kurnool district but also from the neighbouring Jogulamba Gadwal district in Telangana. The market yard has been packed to its limits. While sales began in August with 20,000–25,000 quintals of produce reaching the market, the quantum skyrocketed during the last week of October. 65,000 quintals of onions arrived in just three days.

Trading in onion suffered when the eNAM (electronic National Agriculture Market) system malfunctioned, leading to traders resorting to manual tenders. The delay caused major disruptions, with farmers waiting for hours before bidding started for their produce.

As the trading process took longer than usual, the market yard and surrounding streets became congested with vehicles transporting onions, making it difficult for both farmers and the public to move around the area.

With the rush building up, farmers expressed concerns over traders forming a syndicate, driving down prices. The open market price for onions is around Rs 5,000–Rs 6,000 per quintal. Traders have reportedly offered only Rs 2,000–Rs 2,500 per quintal, a price far below the market value.

One of the farmers S. Maddileti from Dhone mandal has raised concerns over the low prices being offered and the high costs associated with transporting onions. Another farmer Narasimha from Kodumur criticised lack of stocking facilities at the market yard and technical problems arising during the trading process.

With news of such difficulties arising, district in-charge minister N. Ramanaidu assured farmers that steps are being taken to address these issues. He promised to reduce the influence of the traders’ syndicate and ensure that market operations are transparent.

Additionally, the minister announced plans to set up an additional onion market in Kodumur, which will help reduce the pressure on the Kurnool market yard. The new Kodumur market will provide easier access to farmers in nearby areas, reducing their transportation costs, apart from streamlining the trading process.