Mangaluru: Struggling to survive owing to price fluctuations for their produce, rubber growers of Karnataka are deeply unhappy over being ignored by the state budget for the second consecutive year.
The 55,000 registered rubber growers, who have plantations spread across 50,000 hectares in six districts of Uttara Kannada, Udupi, Dakshina Kannada, Shivamogga, Chikkamagaluru and Kodagu districts, are having a tough time due to the erratic prices for their produce.
Although rubber is not a traditional crop of Karnataka, thousands of farmers took to it after the government came out with subsidy and loans as incentives. “It is sad that there is no mention of us in the budget when we are in deep trouble due to the price fluctuations. We wanted the state government to come out with some supportive measures, but it has done nothing,” lamented president of the Karnataka Rubber Producers’ Association, Shridhar Bhide.
Recalling that the Kerala government has come out with a rubber production incentive scheme under which it credits the difference between the market support price and the daily reference price approved by the Rubber Board to the bank accounts of farmers directly, he says the growers in Karnataka were hoping for a similar incentive.
