ONGOLE: The Andhra Pradesh Samajika Vana Raitula Sangham (APSVRS) will hold State-level conference here on August 13 to discuss the problems of eucalyptus, subabul, and casuarina farmers and find a solution to them.APSVRS State general secretary Vadde Hanuma Reddy, along with other Raitu Sangham leaders, at a press conference here on Tuesday, said the farmers had been facing severe problems for the past four years due to lack of the minimum support price (MSP). In 1999, the State government had issued orders stating that the wood would be purchased through the local agriculture market committees by paying the MSP of Rs 4,200 to Rs 4,400 per tonne.
The order was implemented only for a few years. Now, the price offered is Rs 1,600 to Rs 2,400 per tonne. With this, eucalyptus and casuarina farmers were incurring losses to the tune of Rs 25,000 to Rs 35,000 per acre.
In the case of subabul plantation, the farmers were experiencing a loss of Rs 30,000 per acre.
According to statistics available with the government, there are around 75,000 to 80,000 farmers in nine districts, across 25 to 30 Assembly constituencies in the State who are cultivating eucalyptus, subabul and casuarina in 4 lakh acres. In fact, unofficially the extent of this cultivation is around 5 lakh acres and among the nine districts, Prakasam district solely accounts for 42 to 44 per cent of the total production.