Cashing in on the good demand for curry leaves (karivepaku), most sought-after in the market for their distinct flavour and nutritional benefits, several progressive farmers in Enkoor mandal have been reaping rich dividends by cultivating curry leaves in micro-irrigation mode.
Cultivation of curry leaves has, by and large, been confined to Enkoor mandal in the entire district with several enterprising farmers growing the crop in more than 40 acres of land in and around Imamnagar village in the mandal.
However, the enormous potential of the curry leaves, known for rich source of several Vitamins, particularly Vitamin A and micro-nutrients like folic acid, remains untapped elsewhere in the district, particularly in the tribal areas, where anaemia has been prevalent. Curry leaf has been fetching us remunerative price with the ever-increasing demand for the crop, driven by growing health consciousness among consumers about its multiple health benefits, said J. Srinivas, a farmer from Imamnagar.
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Traders from cities like Hyderabad and Vijayawada flock to our village on a regular basis to purchase curry leaves in bulk quantities. “Curry leaf is presently commanding a price of ₹17 per kg in the market,” he said, adding that adoption of drip irrigation system proved immensely beneficial in making the cultivation of curry leaves a viable enterprise.
“Kalyan, a young farmer of our village, had received the best farmer award at a function organised by the Horticulture Department in Hyderabad recently,” said a veteran farmer in the village.
“Our enterprising endeavour inspired farmers at Repallevada and Nacharam villages in the mandal and a few other villages in Julurupadu mandal in the adjoining Bhadrachalam-Kothagudem district to switch over to curry leaf cultivation,” he asserted. Advantages in cultivation of curry leaves and the provision of subsidy on drip irrigation were being highlighted in all the awareness programmes being conducted for the benefit of farmers in the district, said R. Srinivasa Rao, Deputy Director, Horticulture Department, Khammam.
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