CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has ordered notice to the respondent authorities of the state government and private parties directing them to file response within three weeks to a PIL petition, seeking orders to the government to fix the price of organic manure sold through primary agricultural cooperative societies.
The first bench of Acting Chief Justice D Krishnakumar and K Kumaresh Babu issued the notice when a PIL filed by P Jothibasu, a farmer from Neyveli, came up for hearing. Advocate M Purushothaman, who appeared for the petitioner, submitted that the farmers are forced to buy city compost repacked as organic manure at a higher price.
The petitioner alleged that municipal corporations and town panchayats are supplying city compost within a price range of Rs 1,000- Rs 3,000 per tonne, whereas, select private suppliers, who are hand in glove with the Tamilnadu Co-Operative Marketing Federation Limited (TANFED), is supplying the same city compost by repacking it as ‘Organic Manure’ at exorbitant prices ranging from Rs 25,000 to Rs 50,000 per tonne.