With two new Union Ministers from the State belonging to arecanut growing families, expectations are high that they will not let farmers down as far as the proposed ban on arecanut is concerned.
Railway Minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda hails from a family of arecanut growers in Sullia taluk in Dakshina Kannada, while Minister of State for Civil Aviation G.M. Siddeshwar is from a family of arecanut growers in Bheemasamudra in Chitradurga district.
Mr. Gowda led a three-day 90-km padayatra from Sullia to Mangalore in December 2001 seeking minimum support price for white arecanut when the price fell drastically from Rs. 160 a kg to Rs. 40 a kg.
Sridhar G. Bhide, former president, Mangalore Agriculturists’ Sahakari Sangha (MASS) and presently a director on its board, told The Hindu that owing to a negative campaign, there was a wrong impression that arecanut consumption was injurious to health. The two Ministers should take the lead in removing that image and promote arecanut products that were free of tobacco. Mr. Bhide said they could impress upon the government to support production of wine from arecanut and other value-added products that were tobacco free.
‘File affidavit’Ravikirana Punacha, working president, Dakshina Kannada unit of Hasiru SeneKRRS, said the two Ministers should ensure that the Union government argued in favour of arecanut growers in the case — Ankur Gutka vs Indian Asthma Care Society and others — pending before the Supreme Court. The government should file an affidavit that consumption of arecanut was not injurious to health. They should ensure that an arecanut development board was set up at the national-level, he said.
G.V. Joshi, a former member of the Karnataka State Planning Board, who headed a committee that revised the production cost of arecanut, said the two Ministers could influence the government to reduce import of low-quality arecanut.
Manchi Srinivasa Achar, president, All-India Areca Growers’ Association, said the government should declare that arecanut was a useful product. There should be an annual minimum price fixed for arecanut. The growers were hopeful that the two Ministers would not let them down, Mr. Achar said.
