The government has not started procurement yet, many people are forced to destroy their produce who are unable to even meet the transportation cost.
The government has not started procurement yet, many people are forced to destroy their produce who are unable to even meet the transportation cost.
Exactly five years after six garlic farmers were killed in police firing in Madhya Pradesh’s Mandsaur, who were demanding minimum support price for their produce, farmers in the districts bordering Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan are calling on the state and central governments. Against taking up arms for the price. As little as ₹2 for a kilogram of garlic.
They hail from regions such as Kota, Ratlam, Mandsaur, Jhalawar, Baran, Neemuch and Ujjain, which are known as the “Garlic Belt” of the country. The region contributes about 50% of the total garlic production of the country. The farmers are demanding the Center and the states to immediately announce a market intervention scheme and start procuring garlic to help them. He has also decided to start a joint movement under the banner of United Kisan Morcha.
Their concern is further compounded that there has been a decline in procurement by the food processing industries as their products such as garlic powder, garlic paste and garlic sauce have not grown much in the last two years due to low demand and consumption.
The Indian Council of Agricultural Research has taken cognizance of the low yield of garlic. “The main reason for the yield is virus load. We have recommended that the seed production cycle should be changed and fresh seeds from hilly regions like Ooty and Himachal Pradesh should be considered. Ooty has the best quality seeds. If the same garlic is grown continuously, it affects the productivity. Many farmers have changed seeds. We are working to remove these viruses.
Mahesh Khandelwal, general secretary of Kota Grain and Seeds Merchant Association, said that traders have also suffered huge losses due to the situation. “We had urged the central and state governments to start procurement. The market intervention scheme has been approved by the Centre, but the state government has not started procurement. More than one lakh metric tonnes of garlic was to be procured from these markets, but nothing has happened so far,” Mr Khandelwal said. He said the food processing industries used to procure almost the entire “lottery quality” (small garlic) from Kota market. “Exports have also come down,” he said.
According to the Rajasthan Agriculture Department, this year garlic is cultivated in about 1.15 lakh hectares in Kota division of Rajasthan. Farmers say that the average minimum production in one hectare is 50 quintals.
“Now the rate of one kg of garlic is ₹2 to ₹15 depending on the quality. About 25% of the total output is of ‘lottery quality’ every year. This year, it has gone up to 50% due to early summer and heat wave,” said All India Kisan Sabha leader Dulichand Borda. Mr. Borda, a garlic farmer himself, said that this time the farmers have suffered huge losses.
“We got ₹50 for a kilogram of good quality garlic last season and ₹7 to ₹8 for a kilogram of lottery quality garlic last season. Last year’s production was also slightly better than this year. Last time the average production was 65 quintals and the quality of the lottery was also low.
The production cost is around ₹ 2.5 lakh per hectare. Following the Mandsaur firing, both the central and state governments had announced a market intervention scheme in 2018 with a price of ₹3,250 for a quintal of garlic. “Now after four years, the input cost has increased by at least 50% due to diesel. , increase in the prices of fertilizers and pesticides. It is learned that the Center has approved the scheme at the rate of Rs 2,957 per quintal, but procurement has not yet started as the state government is yet to receive any proper order from the Centre. The harvest is more or less over. There are no guidelines as of now,” said Mahesh Vyas, president of the Rashtriya Kisan Mazdoor Mahasangh, the organization that led the farmers’ movement in 2017.
Vyas and Borda have taken up the matter with the respective state governments and Kota MP and Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla. “They have given all assurances, but the procurement has not started,” said Mr. Borda.
United Kisan Morcha leader Shivkumar Kakkaji said that the main issue is that there is no minimum support price for garlic. “The government should consider a support price mechanism for essential vegetables like potato, onion and garlic. Onion farmers in the area are also forced to sell their produce at the rate of ₹2 to ₹5,” said Mr. Kakkaji.
Mr. Vyas said that the farmers are forced to destroy the garlic as they are unable to even pay the transportation fee to the market. “In the Malwa region, there has been a reduction in production. Forget the input cost, even the cost of harvesting cannot be managed. I have one hectare of garlic this time. Last year I had about two hectares and this year I reduced the cultivation due to less production. Last year I got 90 quintals per hectare. Now it is about 55 quintals in one hectare. The 2018 market intervention scheme did not help the farmers here,” Mr Vyas, who recently met Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan over the issue, said.