New Delhi: Minutes after the onion auction in Nashik resumed after a four-day protest, it was halted again as farmers refused to sell their goods at the low purchase rates announced.Farmers stopped the auctions that began at wholesale markets on Thursday (August 24) morning, saying that traders had brought down the price to Rs 1,000-2,100 per quintal, depending on quality, Hindustan Times reported. The auctions resumed at 8:30 am but then were stopped again soon after as farmers expressed their displeasure, the newspaper reported.The refusal to take part in the auction began at the Pimpalgaon APMC and soon spread to 14 others.Around 500 farmers also blocked the Mumbai-Agra highway seeking cancellation of the Union government’s decision to impose 40% export duty on onions.Also read: With an Export Duty on Onions, It’s Clear How Much the Government Prioritises Farmers’ IncomeWhen the auctions resumed again at 3 pm, The Times of India reported, very few farmers participated.“Though the Centre had announced an onion procurement rate onion procurement rate of Rs 2,410 per quintal through Nafed and NCCF, farmers got only between Rs 1,500 and Rs 2,000 per quintal when the auction started after three days on Thursday. This angered the farmers and they halted the auctions at all the APMCs again,” Bharat Dighole, president of the Maharashtra onion growers’ association, was quoted as saying.An official from Lasalgaon APMC said, according to Hindustan Times, “Around 300 vehicles with onions had arrived for auction in the morning with minimum price per quintal being Rs 1,500-1,800.” Another official in Chandwad said the price range was Rs 1,700-1,800 per quintal.