Drop in vegetable prices hits farmers

NAYAGARH: The sharp drop in vegetable prices has left farmers of Nayagarh district high and dry. 
Overproduction as well as absence of cold storages and marketing facility have led to the situation. These factors have also led to distress sale of vegetables, sources said. 

While a cabbage is being sold at Rs 20 per piece, cauliflower is priced at Rs 10 in Ranpur. Similarly, price of radish, turnip and common vegetables like brinjal has also halved. While peas, the price of which was in Rs 60-Rs 80 range a few days back, is now being sold at Rs 40 a kg, Tomato is priced at Rs 20 a kg. 

Farmers moving door-to-door vending vegetables at throwaway prices is a common sight in the district.
Official sources said out of 1.34 lakh hectare (ha) of cultivable land in the district, vegetable is grown in 11,000 ha. While a meagre 19.73 per cent of the total land is covered by irrigation, vegetable is grown mostly in unirrigated areas with water drawn from other sources. 

On the other hand, cultivation of sugarcane has drastically dropped from 4500 ha in 2012-13 to 1650 ha after closure of the sugar factory here in 2014. As per reports, farmers were earning handsomely by supplying sugarcane to the factory. When the factory was closed down, sugarcane farmers turned to paddy. However, they did not find it remunerative and most of them migrated to other places in search of greener pastures. Some of the farmers stuck to ‘Gur’ preparation by traditional method. 

While Nayagarh climate is conducive for sugarcane cultivation, precious little is done for revival of the sugar factory.