For farmers, Covid clouds have silver line

Agri sector shows signs of recovery with copious rain and restoration of supply chain post lockdown relaxations
Good pre-monsoon showers and Unlock 1.0 turned out to be a boost for farmers. (Photo | Express)
Good pre-monsoon showers and Unlock 1.0 turned out to be a boost for farmers. (Photo | Express)

MYSURU: Crop loss, price crash, droughts and floods have inflicted heavy losses on farmers over the past two years in Karnataka, while the Covid-19 pandemic this year further worsened their condition. But with copious rains and restoration of supply chain, after the country started unlocking from the crippling lockdown, the farm sector is showing signs of recovery, even as there are apprehensions over amendments to the Land Reforms Amendment and APMC Acts, perceived as anti-farmer. 

Agriculturists also fear the withdrawal of free power supply to irrigation pumpsets and the minimum support price. The government’s efforts to allay their fears have not yielded results and they have taken to protest, and are planning a Karnataka Bandh on Monday. But sowing operations have continued unhindered. If this year’s kharif season is any indicator, the sector is going to see an unprecedented boom in crop yields, as the area under cultivation has been the highest the state has ever seen.

Good pre-monsoon showers and Unlock 1.0 turned out to be a boost for farmers, who completed sowing operations in 18.99 lakh hectares (26%of the total area), and Unlock 2.0 helped cover 47.01 lakh hectares, or 64% of the area, by July 24. As the monsoon advanced with vigour, sowing operations were completed in the entire 73 lakh hectares. What gave the boost was the return of people from urban areas to villages as the employable population either lost jobs or could not find enough work. Experts suggest that this factor alone could have contributed 5-7% to the increase in cultivation area. 

Farmers have sown cereals in 31.34 lakh hectares, pulses in 18.81 lakh hectares, oil seeds in 11 lakh hectares, commercial crops like cotton in 6.25 lakh hectares and sugarcane in 4.77 lakh hectares. The cereals include maize (87%) and jowar (58%) which are widely grown in North Karnataka, parts of Malnad and southern districts. Tur (82%), urad dal (104%) and green gram (74%) are grown widely in Kalyana Karnataka, Belagavi and parts of the southern districts. Haveri has seen 99% sowing, Bidar 96%, Dharwad 92%, Dakshina Kannada 89% and both Kalaburagi and Belgavi 90%. 

As the monsoon took off late, the Bengaluru region had recorded just 11% sowing by July 24. However, the district achieved the target after it received above-normal rainfall in August. The increase in sowing by 20% across the state as of July-end has upped hopes of the government on the revival of the economy, as the farming sector contributes a substantial 15 per cent to the state’s GDP. 

Eighty per cent of the cultivation is done in the dry regions that comprises 70% of the farming area. A whopping 90% of the state’s rural population depends on this dry belt for livelihood. Kolar, Chikkaballapur and Tumakuru, where fields are normally dry, have turned lush green with above normal rainfall, said Thimmaiah, a farmer from Narasapura. 

Harvesting of kharif crops begins in November, and farmers hope that they will get a better price for their produce with the transport sector fully resuming operations. Farmers who harvested green gram in August could not get good prices as traders from Tamil Nadu and Maharastra were missing.When the lockdown was announced on March 24, farmers were hit badly as they could not move their yield to cities, their primary markets. The reduction in the number of interstate trucks also affected the supply chain. 

Mysuru APMC president Basavaraju said that only 20% of the produce reached APMC during the lockdown. Fear among farmers, traders and also buyers over the spread of coronavirus made them stay back home. Mahesha, a farmer from Kottimatti in Chamrajanagar, said, “I had to crush cabbage grown in two acres and could not harvest banana during the lockdown.” 

The worst-hit probably were pulse growers as they did not get a good price for green gram, black gram, soya and mustard, which are normally sent to other states. But some waited for the market to recover to see profits. “I decided not to sell onion at Rs 8 a kg. I harvested and then stored onion for two months and sold it at Rs 60 a kg,” said Narase Gowda of Nagamangala. During the lockdown, farmers had to spend 30-40% more on farm labour, said Kurbur Shanthakumar, president, Sugar Cane Growers’ Association. 

Grape and pomegranate growers, who were already hit by the worst-ever floods the previous year, had to sell their produce at half the price. Vijayapura district exports dry grapes worth Rs 500 crore and turnover from all agriculture produce from the district is Rs 2,500 crore per year.Karnataka State Grape Growers’ Association president Abhaykumar Nandrekar said that the prognosis is not good for grape growers even next year as a study conducted by the Horticulture University revealed that the yield will be less than 55% because of floods. Grape growers have also been hit by lack of demand from the United Kingdom, Europe and Gulf Countries, while only bulk orders are coming in from temple-towns of Tirupathi and Sringeri. 

But Ambareesh of Kolar says many farmers have managed to recover over the last one month. Ramesh, a pomegranate farmer from Hosadurga, said that prices have stabilised around Rs 70-80 a kg and there have been some orders coming in from international markets. The State Government too has pitched in to help farmers by announcing a loan mela to disburse Rs 1,3000 crore to farmers and others. Cooperation Minister S T Somashekar said that the government will extend loans through cooperative banks, and new members too will be eligible for the scheme.

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