Onion cultivation can open job opportunities to 2L lakh small and marginal farmers in Odisha

Like potato, onion is yet another essential crop Odisha has remained in deficit for years though both are extensively used by the people of the state irrespective of their economic status. In fact, onion has been an essential item for the poor man’s frugal meal. Recently I read a small but useful book of Odisha’s well-known farmer-leader Shri Jagadish Pradhan on Onion farming in Odisha. He had written the book some years ago and therefore recent developments in onion farming have not been included in the book. But his thoughts on onion farming-- a sector he had worked in for years and brought about a lot of improvements in the area of preserving the crop after harvest, continue to be relevant. He had noted the wide gap between demand and production of onion in the state. His assessment was that the state needed 2 lakh MT of onion while it produced only 31,000 MT. Karnataka, Maharashtra and Gujarat were then the major producers. Odisha farmers, however, used little chemical fertiliser but had been deprived of selling the produce as organic products at much higher prices mainly because the government was indifferent to the issue. He had noted that farmers of Borda in Kalahandi and Muribahal of Bolangir had been producing as much as 100 quintals of onion per acre (25,000 kg per hectare). He foresaw the huge potential of the neighbouring market and had felt there was plenty of scope for the export of Odisha-grown onion to West Bengal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Thailand and Myanmar. Appropriate storage, and adequate and timely availability of quality seeds, however, were critical issues that needed addressing. Odisha, he thought can offer gainful job opportunities to over one lakh small and marginal farmers by increasing farming to 22,000 ha. Government reports indicate that in 2018-19. Odisha had onion crop in 33, 000 ha and the state’s production was 3.73 lakh MT with per hectare productivity at 11,279 kg—much below the national average.

In 2021-22, India’s onion production was 312.73 lakh MT. 19.14 lakh ha was under onion crop and productivity was 16,300 kg per ha. Productivity however varied from state to state. Haryana registered the highest, with 28,500 kg per ha followed by Gujarat with 24,500 kg. Madhya Pradesh registered productivity at 24,300 kg followed by Bihar at 22,700 kg. Odisha’s poor productivity needs to be improved. As Jagadish Pradhan had indicated, farmers of Borda and Muribahal had been producing 25,000 kg per ha years ago and this potential could have been nurtured through appropriate state support. 

India is the second-largest onion-growing country in the world. Major Onion producing states now are Maharashtra, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana and Telangana. Maharashtra at present ranks first in Onion production with a share of 35% followed by Madhya Pradesh with a share of 17 % in 2023-24 (source: APEDA). The progress of Madhya Pradesh is just outstanding. Odisha continued to be a poor performer despite immense possibilities. 

India exported 17.17 lakh MT of fresh onion, worth Rs. 3,922.78 crores during 2023-24. Major export destinations (2023-24) were Bangladesh, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, UAE, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Indonesia.
With 5.43% of the production exported, internal consumption was about 295 lakh MT. Odisha’s annual requirement would be about 12 to 15 lakh MT while production is only of the order of 4 lakh MT. There is a need for increasing the area of onion cultivation in Odisha. Maharashtra increased its onion growing area by more than 2 lakh ha in 2021-22 over 2020-21. India’s area under onion increased by about 3 lakh ha in 2021-22 and production by 46 lakh MT in 2021-22 over the previous year. Similar resilience needs to be demonstrated in Odisha as well. 

What needs to be appreciated is that Odisha being a traditionally Onion growing state, provides the necessary ambience and sustainable capacity for larger coverage of area under this crop and improve productivity. The government should therefore mount an ambitious programme for onion and to facilitate that consider posting a Nodal Officer for Onion at Bolangir and launch the programme under Mission mode with the goal for onion cultivation over 60,000 ha with a targeted productivity of 20,000 kg per ha. This would open job opportunities to at least two lakh small and marginal farmers—a possibility industrialisation could never ensure within a short span of time. The development strategy of Odisha, therefore, needs urgent reform. Onion could be as or even more kind to job seekers as semiconductors.

(DISCLAIMER: This is an opinion piece. The views expressed are the author’s own and have nothing to do with OTV’s charter or views. OTV does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.)