As the arrival of season’s fresh potato crop picks up in the markets of Haryana, the growers have started feeling the pinch due to poor return- the average price has seen a sharp dip from around ₹ 3200 a quintal a month and a half ago to nearly ₹ 700 per quintal currently.
Farmers and traders on Wednesday told The Hindu that as potato crop arrival would increase in the coming days, the price is likely to fall further.
“In Shahbad, Pipli and Babain vegetable markets, which are considered to be centres of potato trading, the crop was fetching ₹ 800-850 a quintal on December 23, depending on the quality,” said Ashok Gupta, a Kurukshetra-based commission agent. The demand was weak and supply had increased in the last few days, he noted.
‘This trend is usual’
Initially, when the fresh crop started arriving in the markets in mid-November, it was fetching somewhere in the range of ₹ 3000-3200 a quintal. “Gradually, the price started to fall down as the arrival increased. This trend is usual and it is seen every year,” he said.
Concerned over the falling price, farmers say if the trend continues, they won’t be able to recover even the input costs of the crop.
“I have started harvesting the crop. Two days ago, I sold the first lot of my crop in the Babain market at ₹ 640 a quintal. On an average, the cost of production for potato settles around ₹ 7 to 8 a kg, but what I fetched is even below that. Sustaining in farming is becoming difficult day by day,” said Amit Saini, who has sown potato in nearly 6 acres at Berkheri village in Naraingarh.
“Given the way the price is crashing, if am not able to sell my produce in the next few days I’ll then have to throw my crop on the road,” he added.
Rajeev Sharma, potato farmer from Hasanpur village, said he was staring at huge loss as his crop would be ready for harvest in the next 12-15 days. “The arrival of potato in markets is continuously increasing, which eventually will result in further drop on price. The prevailing price in local ‘mandis’ is ₹ 700-Rs 800. In the next few days it [price], will fall further - which would mean a total loss,” he stated.
Rattan Mann, president of the Bharatiya Kisan Union (Tikait) in Haryana, said it was a phenomenon that farmers have to encounter year after year as there was no government intervention. “Vegetables are perishable in nature. So it's important that an improved transportation and upgraded storage infrastructure is developed by the government to keep a tab on price volatility, which will help both the growers and the consumers,” he pointed out.
