West Asia War Impacts Banana Farmers in Rayalaseema Region
Praveen says it is time the government takes necessary measures to save banana farmers.
Anantapur:War in the West Asia has adversely impacted banana farmers of Rayalaseema region, as exports of the fruit have stopped. As a result, prices have fallen to their lowest in the markets.
A tonne of banana had been between ₹20,000 to ₹25,000 a month ago. Now, it has fallen to ₹8,000 per tonne. Thousands of tonnes of bananas have remained in the orchards, waiting for traders to offer at least the minimum support price.
Rayalaseema banana, grown mainly in Anantapur and Kadapa areas, has demand not only in southern and northern states but in Gulf countries too. Trading companies normally visit orchards and directly purchase bananas from farmers in the village. They package and export them to Middle East countries.
Traders say though banana production is high in Turkey, its fruit cannot last for a week. While Rayalaseema banana sustains for around 12 days. This is the quality that gives it an edge in exports.
The sudden fall in banana prices has left farmers worried. Praveen, a farmer from Kudair mandal, lamented that he has about 20 more tonnes of banana left in his orchard. “With the present price, I can't even recover my investments on fertilisers and pesticides,” he remarked.
Praveen says it is time the government takes necessary measures to save banana farmers.
It may be recalled that when banana growers in Anantapur district faced a crisis four months ago, Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu had intervened and helped out the farmers.
Official sources say banana orchards are spread over 16,000 hectares in Anantapur, 26,000 hectares in Kadapa, and 5,000 hectares in Kurnool district of Rayalaseema. The present season has yielded good production of over 40 lakh tonnes, including 13 lakh tonnes in Anantapur and 11 lakh tonnes in Kadapa districts.
Though farmers have sold about half of their produce one month ago, sales of the remaining production is in jeopardy. Farmer Chandrasekhar Reddy of Tadipatri area says he is waiting for traders to purchase 30 tonnes of his crop.
Malikarjuna, a trader from Anantapur, said presently they can only transport bananas to local markets including Delhi and Calcutta.
“Prior to the war, we had been transporting 7–10 trucks every day. But now, we have orders for only up to three trucks,” he stated.
