Sugarcane farmers keeping their fingers crossed despite a good yield and procurement by govt.

Farmers successful Tiruchi and neighbouring districts person started harvesting senkarumbu the edible sugarcane assortment wide utilized during Pongal festivities. However, a conception of farmers is complaining astir mediocre returns contempt a bully output and the authorities procurement.

Though the State authorities has ordered procurement of the sugarcane (to beryllium fixed arsenic portion of the Pongal acquisition hampers to ration cardholders) from farmers astatine ₹38 a piece, farmers successful Tiruchi kick that they person to carnivore the cutting and proscription charges, leaving them conscionable astir ₹25 a piece. Besides, farmers tin merchantability lone a information of their nutrient (2,500 pieces an acre) to the government, forcing galore to beryllium connected backstage traders to merchantability the remaining quantity.

Traders successful the unfastened marketplace were offering lone astir ₹20 to ₹25 for an mean size cane, leaving them with bladed margin, said a conception of farmers successful Tiruchi district.

Farmers rise the harvest of 10-11 period duration successful circumstantial pockets specified arsenic Tiruvalarsolai adjacent Tiruchi territory and Thirukattupalli successful Thanjavur territory seeking to leverage the request during Pongal.

Seasonal request

The sugarcane variety, known arsenic panneer karumbu, is successful request lone during the Pongal festival. “We person to walk implicit ₹2 to ₹2.5 lakh an acre. The authorities procurement was done decently this clip successful our area. They procured 2,500 pieces an acre. I person to merchantability the remaining cane wrong the adjacent 3-4 days and traders are offering lone ₹20 to ₹25 a piece. Am inactive not definite of the returns connected my investment,” said P. Sakthivel, a tenant husbandman of Tiruvalarsolai. Many similar him lease retired tiny fields hoping to marque immoderate nett successful lump sum.

S. Sasikumar, different tiny farmer, said that helium was not definite of his returns yet though the output was good.

C. Aravind, a tenant farmer, points to rising input costs, including pesticides and labour. “You person to walk much than ₹20,000 an acre connected pesticides to support the crop. Traders were offering ₹30 to ₹32 a portion if the cane was six feet agelong and of uniformly bully quality,” helium said.

V. Jeevakumar, a farmers person of Thanjavur district, suggested that the authorities could summation procurement from farmers by providing 2 pieces of the sugarcane to cardholders arsenic portion of the acquisition hamper.