Lockdown leaves state farmers in the lurch

Thousands of tonnes of vegetables and fruits are lying abandoned in farms across the state, as farmers are neither able to harvest nor able to market their produce amid the nationwide lockdown.

Farmers say easing restrictions on transport of agricultural produce has done little to improve the situation.

"Farmers are unable to harvest crops as there are no workers. Not just this, those who have managed to harvest whatever little they could, are unable to find minimum price to market their produce. If there are lorries for transport, there are no drivers. If there are drivers, there are no consumers," farmer leader Kuruburu Shanthkumar explained, saying this situation prevails across the state.

The farmers have had no luck at APMCs as they are unable to get a reasonable price, with middlemen pocketing the profit. Further, with no bulk purchasers such as restaurants and wedding halls, even traders are hesitant to buy the stock, he pointed out.

If one were to take the instance of Kolar and Chikkaballapur districts, thousands of tonnes of cabbage, capsicum, ridge gourd and tomato have gone waste, farmers here said. "I have 100 tamarind trees which were ready for harvest but I had to abandon it. A friend lost 3-4 tonnes of ridge gourd. The lockdown was needed but crop loss is its downside,” said K V Reddeppa, a farmer in Srinivasapura. He is also the president of Kolar and Chikkaballapur Federation of Organic Farmers’ Associations.

There is no use in easing transport restrictions if there is no market for our produce, Kolar District Mango Growers Association president Neelaturu Chinnappa Reddy said. “We usually sell our produce in Chennai, Krishnagiri and Chittoor. Even if we were to go to these places, who will buy our produce during lockdown,” he asked.

The government was using farmers only for slogans, he said. For a vegetable that is sold at Rs 20, the farmer gets only Rs 4, he added, underlining the disparity. The government should buy their produce and assure a minimum support price, Shanthkumar and Reddy said.

Agriculture and Horticulture Secretary Rajender Kataria said problems existed in Kolar, Mysore, Chamarajanagar, Yadgir and Kalaburagi till last week. "However, things have improved over the last three days. To resolve the issue, we have activated the supply chain by setting up a task force and are interacting with wholesale dealers. Hopcoms are also buying produce from farmers. Green passes have been issued, vehicles are moving and the prices have improved for the produce. Things are under control now," he said.