Vegetable farmers in Mysuru and surrounding regions have been left high and dry amidst a vigorous monsoon that has inundated vast swathe of vegetable tracts, raising concern of depleting yield and losses.
Tomato farmers are among the worst affected leaving the farmers vulnerable to fluctuating prices that swings from around ₹80 to ₹.3 a kilo.
‘’This season has been particularly harrowing for vegetable cultivators as incessant rains during the current monsoon spell have left agricultural fields with stagnant water. As a result the vegetables cannot be harvested and are rotting in the field’’, said Nagaraj, of Raita Mitra Mysuru-Chamarajanagar Vegetable Cultivators Association.
He said the input cost per acre for cultivating tomatoes is anywhere between ₹40,000 and ₹50,000 but the farmers were staring at loss this year. Two months ago the rates were around ₹80 per kilo of tomato and now it is hovering around ₹3 a kilo, said Mr. Nagaraj.
‘’A crate of 22 kg is being offered at around ₹70 at the wholesale APMC yard. But the transportation cost levied per crate is ₹20 and the rate varies depending on the distance between the farm and the APMC yard’’, he added.
Vegetables including tomatoes, brinjals, cauliflower, cabbage, beans, etc is cultivated in Mysuru, H.D.Kote and surrounding regions. Bulk of it used to be transported to the bordering State of Kerala as well that would give the farmers good returns.
But this year, Kerala has turned to Tamil Nadu to meet the bulk of its requirements as a result of which the demand from Kerala for vegetables grown in Mysuru region has dropped by nearly 40 per cent, according to the vegetable cultivators association.
With decline in demand and depleting yield due to heavy rains, farmers are now staring at severe loss. That the rains have played a major role in the economic distress of the farmers is evident from the rainfall data for the region.
According to the Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre, Mysuru has received 212 mm of rainfall during July against a normal of 122 mm while the city and the district received 26 mm of rainfall against a normal of 33 mm during the 24 hour period ending 8.30 a.m. of Tuesday. The scenario is similar in Mandya and Chamarajanagar districts as well with above-normal rains lashing the region.
In Chamarajanagar, heavy rains coupled with the release of flood waters from the Kabini dam, flooded agricultural fields resulting in crop loss. And with no sight of abatement of rains the uncertainty of the farming community continues for now.
