A delegation of Karnataka Rajya Adike Marata Sahakara Sanghagala Mahamandala – a federation of cooperative societies involved in marketing of arecanut – submitted a memorandum to Union Minister for Commerce and Industry Nirmala Sitharaman in New Delhi on June 27 requesting her to take necessary measures to ban the import of arecanut.
Union Minister for Chemicals and Fertilizers H.N. Ananth Kumar, president of Bharatiya Janata Party State unit B.S. Yeddyurappa, the functionaries of Central Arecanut and Cocoa Marketing and Processing Cooperative Ltd, Malnad Arecanut Marketing Cooperative Society and Tota Utpannagala Marata Sahakara Niyamita were part of the delegation.
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In the memorandum, the Mahamandala said that the price of arecanut that was at Rs. 80,000 per quintal in June 2014 has fallen to Rs. 22,000 now.
The Mahamandala blamed the import of arecanut as reason for the decline in the price and has requested the Union government to impose a complete ban on the import.