The ongoing indefinite strike by lorry operators, against the hike in the third party insurance premiums and the mandatory scrapping of vehicles that are 15-years-old, has severely affected the sales and transportation of coconut and jaggery in the district.
The district has Asia’s largest coconut market on the Agricultural Produce Marketing Committee (APMC) premises in Maddur, and another market at APMC in Malavalli. There are around 530 registered jaggery-producing units (aalemane) across all seven taluks. While the coconut traders in Maddur buy at least 4.79 lakh tender coconuts a day, the aalemane owners’ produce no less than 160 tonnes of jaggery every day.
The prolonged goods transport operators’ protest has affected the traders as well as the coconut and jaggery suppliers in the district.
Truckloads of tender coconuts have remained unsold at the APMC in Maddur and Malavalli. Aalemane owners were asked to “temporarily” suspend jaggery production owing to the strike, officials at APMCs in Maddur, Malavalli and Mandya said.
There is a great demand for Mandya coconuts in Goa, Maharashtra, Delhi, Gujarat and some other states. The traders at Maddur and Malavalli APMCs supply at least 25 crore nuts to these states annually. Over 75% of jaggery produced from Mandya goes to Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and other states.
The lorry operators are refusing to lift the loads and hence the jaggery suppliers were asked not to bring the produce or suspend the production activities, jaggery traders told The Hindu here on Friday.
According to the traders, 1,650 quintals of jaggery stock, procured before the commencement of strike, are on the verge of melting owing to the prevailing hot weather. It is alleged that the traders have been exploiting suppliers by quoting low prices by taking advantage of the strike.
Instead of lorries, many traders are hiring pickups and minivans to transport tender coconuts and jaggery. They have cut down the procurement price by at least 15%, tender coconut suppliers at Maddur AMPC said.
