Banana plantations are widespread and have been cultivated by farmers since many years in Tarikere. Banana is preferred by farmers because it gives yield faster within a short period of time. It is grown in areas which has good water supply.
Amrithapura in Tarikere is like hub of banana plantation and the ‘Yelakki’ variety of banana grown here has great demand. ‘Rasabale,’ ‘Selambale,’ ‘Marabale’ and ‘Pachchebale’ are some of the other varieties grown in the region throughout the year.
S Ramesh, a banana grower, says that since banana used to bring good income, he has planted huge areas of land with banana, taking loans from various banks. Now that the yield is lying without any buyers, he has been worrying about repaying the loan amount.
Banana trader Murthy says that in summer, large number of people have been purchasing watermelon, tender coconut, other fruits and fruit juices.
For reasons unknown, the buyers of banana are very few. Since ripe bananas get rotten fast, he says that he has already incurred loss this season. While the growers pocketed good income during last 6 months, there are all possibilities of they being forced to sell the produce at lower cost. With the hope that the prices may shoot up after June, the growers await for silver lining.
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