Banana growers in Tiruchi-Karur belt are sore over crash in price of nendran variety early in the harvest season.
This is the second consecutive year that farmers are airing such complaints. Farmers complained that the field price of nendran banana has crashed to ₹10 a kg from the usual ₹35-40 a kg. The variety is mainly purchased by traders from Kerala, who supply the fruit for making chips there.
Banana is a major crop grown in the Tiruchi-Karur belt and a large number of farmers raise the nendran variety depending on the Kerala market, points out Puliyur A. Nagarajan, president,farmers wing of the Tamil Maanila Congress.
“Farmers raise the variety depending on the Kerala market. Now the fruit price has crashed to ₹10 a kg whereas farmers have to spend ₹50 for producing the same. The price crash has become a regular feature every year now,” Mr. Nagarajan claimed. Heavy arrivals of the fruit in Kerala market is said to have led to the price crash.
Putting forth a series of demands before the government as farmers are repeatedly suffering due to price fluctuations, Mr. Nagarajan urged the government to fix the minimum support price for bananas.
He also demanded that the government procure the banana at ₹50 a kg and supply a banana each to children under the noon meal scheme. The government should provide training to women’s groups on value addition in banana by promoting cottage units.
Cold storages should be created and storage space should be offered to farmers free of cost so that they can hold the produce till the price appreciates. Beside, the banana growing belt in Tiruchi and Karur should be declared as a special banana zone for promoting banana cultivation, value addition and exports, he demanded.
