Farmer In UP Dumps 1000 Kilos Of Cauliflower On Road After Traders Offer Just One Rupee Per KG

Upset over the low price offered for his cauliflower produce by the licensed traders on the Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC) campus in Pilibhit, UP, a marginal farmer threw 10 quintals of cauliflower on the road to let the needy have it and cook it without any charge, as per a report in TOI. It was his entire produce.

Mohammad Saleem who hails from Jahanabad town was offered Rs 1 per kg which was equivalent to the transportation cost he bore to get it to the APMC campus.

¡°I have half an acre of land where I had cultivated cauliflower and spent around Rs 8,000 on seeds, cultivation, irrigation, fertilisers, etc. In addition, I had to bear harvesting and transportation costs worth Rs 4,000,¡±he said.

TOI

Retail price of cauliflower is Rs 12-14 per kg

¡°The retail price of cauliflower at present is Rs 12 to 14 per kg and I was expecting at least Rs 8 per kg for my produce. When I was offered a mere Re 1 per kg, I had no option but to throw away all my produce to save the transportation cost to bring it back home,¡± he added.

¡°The loss has put my family, comprising a 60-year-old mother, younger brother, wife and two school-going children, on the edge of starvation. My brother and I will now have to take up some labour work to provide for the family,¡± he went on to say.

¡°We were helpless in applying any regulations regarding the procurement price of vegetable crops as these were not covered under the minimum support price policy of the state government,¡± said APMC secretary Vigil Balyan.

PTI

¡°The prices of vegetables are normally governed by the volume of supply although the traders had a tendency of earning the major part of the profit,¡± he added.

Just shows the plight of the average farmer as he has to make ends meet. One can understand the frustration of the man who was pushed to the point of throwing away his entire produce. While the country reels from the farmers' protests against the new laws, one must realise that if we expect them to feed us, the least we can ensure is that they get the bare minimum in return for their efforts.