Cotton growers of Nagapttinam in distress as prices crash after off-season rain

Severe drop in prices has created a huge distress among cotton farmers in Nagapattinam. These farmers were already affected by the recent untimely rain.

Despite the minimum support price being ₹66 a kg this year, local traders are buying cotton at only ₹40 to ₹46 a kg.

P. Balasubramanian, Alathur Panchayat president in Tirumarugal block, where cotton is cultivated on 220 hectares, said low procurement prices pushed farmers into debt. ”At least ₹50,000 is needed to cultivate cotton on one acre. Because of recent untimely rain, only 2 to 2.5 quintal of cotton is harvested on one acre as against the usual 4 to 4.5 quintal. Now, when the private traders offering ₹40 to ₹46 a kg, we cannot recover the cost, pushing us to take loans even to support our family,” he said.

“The price now is only ₹42 a kg. I have cultivated cotton on around 2 acres this year and was hoping to use the profit for my children’s education and to remodel our house. But the drop in price has left me in a hopeless situation. Even to shift to paddy in the coming season, I need financial assistance,” said R. Kavya, another farmer from Tirumrugal.

“Cotton farmers are hugely affected this time and the government has not stepped in. The Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) should procure directly from farmers and save them from the middle men who are not paying them the rate as per the MSP,” said S.R. Tamil Selvan from the Tamizhaga Vivasayigal Pathukappu Sangam.

Pointing to a severe drop in price, where last year good quality cotton was sold at ₹110 a kg and average quality cotton at ₹80 a kg, sources from the Agriculture Department said the trend was similar across the State.

“Cotton is cultivated on 2,700 hectares in Nagapattinam and we have reported to the State government that the crop on 1,300 hectares has been lost because of untimely rain. Among those unaffected, this drop in price has hurt farmers badly. The CCI can step in, but it has many norms like managing transportation cost for ginning which has to be borne by farmers. Farmers have to be united to persuade CCI to help them, but most farmers prefer local traders who purchase directly from the field despite huge price differences,” said a senior Agriculture Department official.

Sources in the Agriculture Marketing Department said a regulated market for cotton would be opened soon in the district. “It is challenging to bring traders who will procure at higher prices,” said an official.