As Mango Prices Crash, Vellore Farmers Seek Govt Protection

Vellore: The mango farmers in Vellore district have appealed to the government to provide subsidies and not allow the entry of fruits from other states, since they are facing huge losses due to the fall of mango prices.

They cited the action of Andhra Pradesh government, which is providing subsidies for mangoes. The farmers, who scattered the mangoes on the road and held protests at Baratharami village, said the production of mangoes had increased this year in several villages of Vellore district.

There was no industry to produce mango pulp in the district, and they used to send the fruits to the pulp factories in Andhra Pradesh. But they could not sell the mangoes in Andhra Pradesh now since the government has banned buying mangoes from other states. The prices of mangoes in the open market had plunged to Rs. 3,000 per tonne, although the farmers spend Rs. 50,000 per acre for mango cultivation.

Last year, the previous government promised to take measures to protect the mango farmers in Vellore but no action was taken, the protesters said. They said the Andhra Pradesh government was providing subsidies to the mango farmers and sought similar measures by the Tamil Nadu government. They also asked the government to ban the buying of mangoes from Andhra Pradesh.