Basmati growers in Punjab and Haryana complain of not getting remunerative prices Basmati growers in Punjab and Haryana say they feel let down due tothe government and trade cartels not ensuring remunerative prices for their crop.Rice exporters on the other hand attributelow prices to hike in import duty by Iran and crop over-supply due to rise in basmati acreage.With state governments including Punjab pitching for bringing more area under basmati crop as part of crop diversification plan, farmers, who had to spend extra buck this kharif season in the wake of drought-like conditions, complained of fetching over 30 per cent lesser prices for basmati including PUSA 1121 this season.We are not getting adequate prices of our basmati crop. The current prices are much below what we got last year, said a basmati grower of Gurdaspur, Punjab.... we are being exploited by not being paid good prices of our crop, said the grower who grows both Basmati and common variety rice.Farmers said it was commission agents better known as Arthiyas who deprive farmers of getting remunerative prices oftheir crop by forming cartels in order to earn more profit.It is the responsibility of the government to ensure that farmers are getting their dues. But no one from the government side bothered to check exploitation of farmers at the hands of traders, said another basmati grower.Basmati prices like PUSA 1121 which is arriving in grain markets are currently ruling at Rs 2,800-3,100 per quintal as against 4,000-4,500 per quintal last season.PUSA 1121 accounts for over 70 per cent of area under basmati crop in Punjab and Haryana. Earlier, prices of another basmati variety 1509 went down to Rs 2,100-2,200 per quintal from Rs 2,800-3,000 per quintal. Punjab and Haryana are major basmati rice producing states and contribute 70 per cent of countrys premium rice variety production.Notably, basmati rice remained an electionissue in recent Haryana assembly polls. Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his first election rally at Karnal in Haryana onOctober 4 had even hit out at Congress forspreading lies that Centre had imposed aban on basmati rice export.Modi had accused previous Congress government in Haryana of imposing 4 per cent tax, rendering basmati uncompetitive in the market. Rejecting any exploitation of farmers, rice exporters said there was no exploitation of basmati growers taking place by not giving them right prices of crop.Last year, basmati prices were exceptionally high which forced rice exporters to suffer heavy losses. The current prices of basmati are correct and right rates. These rates are fetching profit to basmati growers, Kohinoor FoodsJoint MD Gurnam Arora told PTI.Exporters also ascribed the low rates as compared to last years rates to lesser demand from Iran -- biggest importer of rice from India.They said that Iran had raised import dutyon rice import from India which was also one of the factors of low rates this yearfrom last year.Fearing import duty raised by Iran on rice import could hit states basmati growers, Haryana Agriculture Minister O P Dhankar had even written to Union minister of Commerce and Industry Nirmala Sitharaman to take up the issue with that country.The minister had even asked rice exportersto be transparent in giving prices to basmati growers.Oversupply of crop on account of huge increase in basmati area especially in Punjab was also one of the factors oflow prices, rice traders said. Area sown under basmati crop this year surged by 55 per cent to 8.62 lakh hectares in Punjab.With around 30 per cent of total paddy area being under basmati , its output is expected to reach 34 lakh tonne as against22.65 lakh tonne recorded last season, creating a glut like situation.In neighbouring Haryana, 40 per cent of total area under paddy which is 11.38 lakh hectares is under basmati crop.In an effort to drive up prices, the Punjab government had even slashed market fee and rural development fund by one per cent each on basmati crop in order to motivate buyers from outside Punjab for the purchase of basmati. But it appeared to have not caused desired affect, traderssaid.
Posted on: Sun, 02 Nov 2014 14:06:20 +0000
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