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By:

Kaustubh Kale

10 September 2024 at 11:37:15 pm

Duss (10) Suron Ki Sunoge, Toh Sahi Kaise Chunoge?”

Dussehra may have passed a few days ago, but its lessons remain relevant throughout the year. The festival celebrates Lord Ram’s triumph over Ravana, who is famously depicted with ten heads. In the world of personal finance, these “ten heads” can symbolize the overwhelming number of opinions and advice people receive when managing their money. If you listen to every voice and follow every trend, you will struggle to identify the right path for yourself. Learn Personal Finance: Knowledge is...

Duss (10) Suron Ki Sunoge, Toh Sahi Kaise Chunoge?”

Dussehra may have passed a few days ago, but its lessons remain relevant throughout the year. The festival celebrates Lord Ram’s triumph over Ravana, who is famously depicted with ten heads. In the world of personal finance, these “ten heads” can symbolize the overwhelming number of opinions and advice people receive when managing their money. If you listen to every voice and follow every trend, you will struggle to identify the right path for yourself. Learn Personal Finance: Knowledge is Power In today’s fast-paced world, financial advice is everywhere - friends, family, colleagues, social media influencers, and unsolicited internet tips. Not all of it will be relevant to your unique financial situation. To navigate through the noise, it is important to take control of your financial education. Start by understanding key financial concepts like risk, return, liquidity, and time horizon for different investment products. Risk refers to the potential loss you might face with an investment. Return is the profit you can expect to earn. Liquidity indicates how easily an asset can be converted into cash. Time horizon is how long you plan to invest before needing to access the funds. Learning these basics will help you evaluate which products actually suit your goals and needs. By educating yourself, you will develop a critical eye that helps you distinguish between helpful advice and distracting noise. Whenever you analyse any instrument, all four criteria (risk, return, liquidity, time horizon) must be considered together and aligned with your financial goals - such as children’s education, marriage, buying a home, vacations, cars, or retirement. Having a foundational understanding of these concepts ensures that you do not fall prey to quick-fix schemes or misleading suggestions that often sound attractive in the short run but prove damaging over the long term. Have a Financial Advisor: Like a Family Doctor for Your Finances As you educate yourself, you will eventually realise that managing your finances can be challenging. This is where having a reliable financial advisor, much like a trusted family doctor, plays a crucial role. Wealth creation is a marathon, not a sprint. While basic financial knowledge helps you understand the dos and don'ts, a financial advisor handholds you throughout the journey, guiding you towards your financial destination. A financial advisor tailors their guidance based on your unique profile - your income, savings, risk tolerance, and future financial goals. A good advisor helps you stay focused on long-term objectives while steering you away from emotional or impulsive decisions. Hence, it is important to have a well-qualified, full-time financial advisor. The Dussehra Reminder The message remains: do not listen to ten heads. Choose wisely, stay informed, and have a trusted financial guide by your side. After all, it takes years of education, experience, expertise, and wisdom to write a prescription - so do not self-medicate when it comes to your wealth! (The writer is a Chartered Accountant and CFA (USA). Financial Advisor. Views personal. He could be reached on 9833133605.)

Onions Will Make Leaders Cry

Suyash Padate
Oct 22, 2024
2 min read
Onions

It may be recalled that in 1998 Delhi state elections the BJP miserably lost to the Congress.  A major contributing factor to the BJP’s defeat was the skyrocketing onion prices due to crop failure in the country. This is one example of the political implications of onion prices. This time around somewhat the same situation has arisen. So, who will bear the brunt is the question hovering in the minds of people.  


During the festive season, rising onion prices have brought tears to many eyes. The government’s policy is solely responsible for this. The Centre’s decision to ban onion exports, aimed at reducing domestic prices, backfired politically and the disregard for onion farmers’ demands, cost the BJP-led alliance dearly in the state in recently concluded Lok Sabha polls. Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, the onion farmers in Nashik had launched a ‘rath yatra’ to bring attention to their plight as they were disappointed with the elected members from the state for not raising the issue of the export ban in Parliament and failing to voice farmers’ concerns.


The surge in onion prices in India is expected to drive up international costs and food expenses. The support prices for onions have skyrocketed, with the Centre purchasing them at a rate 74 per cent higher than last year in Maharashtra, the nation’s top onion-producing state. Last year, onions were bought at Rs 16.93 per kg, but this year’s procurement price has risen to Rs 29.5 per kg, with payments made directly to farmers through the Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) system to cut out intermediaries. To manage the situation, the Centre is distributing onions through NAFED outlets, mobile vans, and other channels at Rs 35 per kg. Significantly, the basic question remains unanswered as to how long this arrangement will work. Even when procurement prices were as low as Rs 16.93 per kg, national prices seldom fell below Rs 30 per kg. Currently, onion prices are hovering between Rs 60 and 70 per kg.


Nationwide the onion prices are expected to remain high, as the Maharashtra government is allocating Rs 1500 crore to purchase onions from local farmers and traders, aiming to maintain their support for upcoming elections. In December 2023, the government imposed an export ban on onions to tackle escalating retail prices ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. This measure led to a drop in onion prices by around 40 per cent, from Rs 42.2 per kg in December 2023 to Rs 24.5 per kg by March 2024. On March 23, 2024, the export ban on onions was extended indefinitely in response to the Lok Sabha election. This move led to a decrease in prices.


In Nashik, Maharashtra’s onion-growing heartland, the discontent among onion farmers led to the defeat of Union Minister of State Bharati Pawar in the Dindori constituency in the district and BJP alliance candidate Hemant Godse in Nashik.


Onion farmers also played a crucial role in toppling BJP alliance candidates in 11 Lok Sabha constituencies.

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