Cashew farmers demand ₹200 per kg support price

Cashew farmers demand minimum support price of ₹200/kg, plan protests to pressure State government for fair prices.

Cashew farmers have demanded that the State government announce the minimum support price of cashew as ₹200 per kg and that it purchase cashew from the farmers through the Girijan Cooperative Corporation (GCC) and Rythu Bharosa Kendras (RBK).

At a roundtable organised jointly by the AP Jeedi Mamidi Rythula Sangam (AP Cashew Farmers Association) and the Adivasi Girijana Sangham, at the CITU Office, here, on Sunday, the speakers said that around 1 lakh farmers were dependent on cashew farming for a livelihood in the North Andhra districts of Parvathipuram Manyam, Vizianagaram, Anakapalli, Srikakulam, Eluru and Kakinada districts.

They were cultivating cashew in 3.40 lakh acres and producing 15 lakh metric tonnes of cashew. But, they were incurring losses as they were not getting remunerative prices for their produce. Due to lack of minimum support price, unscrupulous traders were cheating the farmers by buying their produce at low prices.

Adivasi Girijana Sangham State general secretary Killo Surendra, Jeedi Mamidi Rythula Sangam State convener K. Mohana Rao, Rythu Sangam State vice-president M. Suryanarayana spoke at the meeting chaired by Adivasi Girijana Sangam State leader Sidari Appa Rao.

They said that dharnas would be held at ITDA and Collector’s Offices on March 17 to exert pressure on the State government in this regard.