Farmers halt onion auction at Lasalgaon amid fall in prices

A day after the Centre banned the export of onions and imposed stock limits for traders, auction at the country's largest wholesale onion market at Lasalgaon in Nashik district was halted after protests by farmers on Monday.

The auction at the Lasalgaon Agriculture Produce Market Committee resumed later in the day, traders said.

Farmers staged demonstrations at the APMC, bringing onion auction to a halt, an official said. Farmers also staged a rasta roko on Mumbai-Agra highway at Umrane and at Vincur on Nashik-Aurangabad road.

"The government's decision to ban exports onions and limit onion stocks to up 100 quintals per retailer has made onion producers in Lasalgaon see red. They refused to sell onions in the wholesale market in Lasalgaon on Monday," a farmer said.

An official said onions from six trucks were auctioned on Monday with minimum price being Rs 2,601, maximum at Rs 3,351 and average at Rs 3,065, a drop of Rs 600 in average prices.

Farmers alleged the Centre .