BENGALURU: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday announced, “PM Narendra Modi has promised to start a Turmeric Board that will help turmeric farmers get fair remuneration, build value chain, increase exports and encourage research in medicines made out of turmeric.’’
Many reacted to this statement with caution as it was made when the elections were happening to five state assemblies. FKCCI president Ramesh Chandra Lahoti said that often, such election-time announcements should be taken with a pinch of salt. “A pulses board was announced in Karnataka. But nothing really happened after that. They just open an office and farmers are not helped. They have to follow it up with concrete action,” he added. But an assured minimum support price (MSP) would help turmeric farmers, spread across Chamarajanagar, Mysuru, Hunsur, Bagalkot and Belagavi districts.
A senior retired bureaucrat said, “Such boards don’t do much other than routing government schemes. However, farmers will have the authority to approach and redress their grievances. The central government had sounded out that such a board would be started in 2019 and was formally launched on October 4 this year. The latest statement may mean that some activity is starting on the ground. All the other boards are doing very little.”
In Karnataka, turmeric used to be grown in large tracts of land. But with prices dropping, farmers have stopped growing this cash crop. Manikya Nanjunde Gowda. a farmer in Hunsur, said, “My family and I grew turmeric for three to four decades. In 2010, the price was Rs 18,000 per quintal, but two years later, it crashed to Rs 2,500. We were in deep trouble as we had to spend Rs 8,000 to grow a bag of turmeric. We went to Jantar Mantar in Delhi and protested.
The central government agreed to support us with a price of Rs 4,000 per quintal, while the state government offered us an additional Rs 1,000. But soon, the prices collapsed again. I stopped growing turmeric. Many switched from turmeric to ginger, which gives us better earnings. Some also started growing tobacco. My relatives around here, however, still grow the crop. If things improve, I will start growing turmeric again.”
Turmeric Farmers Association of India General Secretary Kurubur Shantakumar said, “Turmeric farmers need an assured MSP and that will help them more than any announcement during elections. In which other profession do you see so much despair and suicides? Farming as a profession needs help and a turmeric board as welcome. But someone needs to spell out the tangibles.’’