Expressing distress over the falling prices of onions in Maharashtra, the Shiv Sena on Friday asked why farmers cannot be given their due if the state government can implement the 7th Pay Commission.
The Sena, in an editorial in party mouthpiece Saamana, pointed out that onion farmers in Aurangabad’s Vaijapur Agricultural Produce Marketing Committee (APMC) were getting as little as 20 paise per kg for their produce.
“These onions could become bombs and explode,” the Sena editorial warned.
It said the true picture of the condition of farmers cultivating onions, cotton and tomatoes was yet to come before the government, adding that the government would not have “thrown assurances” at them if it knew their plight.
The Sena said all that the farmers were demanding was money to cover the cost of production.
“But the government distances itself from the demands citing lack of funds and other technical problems. The government borrows Rs 500 crore from Shri Saibaba Sansthan Trust in Shirdi for its pending projects. It also can spare two to five hundred crore for the bullet train project,” it said.