Cutting short the joy of farmers who were expecting a good price for paddy, the season began on a gloomy note in most parts of Krishna Western Delta. Farmers feel that the average remunerative price of ₹1,200 per 75 kg bag being offered in the market is lesser than the price offered last year.
A near-normal South West monsoon and the rains in October raised hopes among farmers. After years, the monsoon kept its date kindling hopes of a bumper harvest. Paddy is sown in 5 lakh acres in KWD, most of it in Tenali division. A record harvest of 38-43 bags per acre has warmed the hearts of the farmers, most of them using harvesters.
But the low prices of ₹1,050-₹1,200 per bag have dampened the mood of farmers. Most of tenant farmers said that they usually give 22-24 bags of paddy or pay ₹25,000-₹30,000 to the landowners, and still have some thing. But this year they are keeping their fingers crossed.
“I have taken lease of a 10-acre farm but the season has not been productive so far. We are planning to sow maize as a second crop and hoping that we get a good harvest or else we could land in a debt trap,’’said Dharmarajula Venkatappaiah, a tenant farmer from Somasundara Palem.
