Faulty agro policies see farmers in Indian sub-continent suffering
New Delhi, India (AHN) – The Indian Agricultural Ministry Friday lifted the two-month-long export ban on onions after wholesale prices came down considerably and the threat of a mass movement by farmers losing out on the lucrative international market.
India stopped the export of onions in December following the spiraling cost of the essential commodity in the Indian market. However, the move proved counterproductive for the farmers who lost out to competitors in the international market, thus sending their minimum export price of $1,200 a tonne plummeting to $600.
Agricultural Ministry officials said on condition of anonymity that the absence of a concrete export policy was the bane of the country and this was the reason for the price of the vegetable crashing to an all-time low.
The officials said that not just India, but other South Asian countries too, didn’t have a tangible export policy. Recently, Sri Lanka also has seen huge fluctuations in the prices of essential commodities due to restrictions on the rights of citizens to deal freely in food.
The Lankan poultry sector has been hit hard by the restriction on the import of maize, with the government opining that this would help homebred maize-growers increase production. It’s another thing that the price of meat, eggs and chicken has gone through the roof, thanks to the new government regulation.
Despite Sri Lanka being one of the largest producers of rice, the country has persistently higher prices of the grain than the rest of the world, resulting in high incidences of malnutrition among children.
The Lankan government’s decision to limit the import of edible oils has sent the price of fresh coconut skyrocketing, and now the most readily available commodity in the island nation is selling at three times the price compared to other coconut oil producing countries.
Another policy by the Lankan government, to tax imported onions to assist local farmers, has also boomeranged on the economy, with the price of the vegetable going beyond the common man’s reach.
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