Rain showers hardship on farmers

Untimely rain, low market price for produce, and shortage of workers are the major concerns of paddy farmers in Wayanad during the ‘punja’ (summer crop) season.

The minimum support price for paddy has been fixed at ₹2,330 a quintal by the government, including the State incentive bonus. But farmers say they get only ₹1,550 a quintal in the open market. The spot price of the Matta variety was ₹1,550 to ₹1,600 a quintal at the Meenangadi market on Friday against the ₹1,950 a quintal a few weeks ago. It reached up to ₹2,200 a quintal four months ago.

Though Supplyco had started paddy procurement in the district recently, only cleaned paddy with less than 17% moisture content was being procured, farmers say.

“I spent ₹30,000 to cultivate paddy on an acre and I got 17 quintals after the harvest,” Viswanathan, a farmer at Panamaram said. Now he is forced to sell the produce at a throwaway price to pay workers’ wages. “It is sad that we are forced to sell our produce at such a low price,” says Kesavan Keezhanikkal, another farmer.

Usually the sale of hay helps farmers recoup the expenditure. Last season, Kesavan had sold hay for ₹6,000. This time, untimely rain dashed that hope too since hay could not be dried.

Low demand

“There is not much demand for paddy from the district at the rice mills at Kalady and Palakkad since mixed rice varieties are cultivated here,” says K.K. Ibrahim, a paddy trader at Meenangadi.

As per the data with the Principal Agriculture Office, Wayanad, paddy was cultivated in 560 hectares of land this season.

Supplyco had got online application for procuring paddy from 25 hectares, of which 10 tonnes of paddy had been procured so far, Agricultural Department sources said.