Dindigul, June 26 (IANS) Mango farmers in parts of Tamil Nadu’s Dindigul district are reeling under a steep fall in the prices of key mango varieties, triggering distress and urgent appeals for government support.

The varieties worst affected include ‘Neelam’, ‘Bangalura’, and ‘Senthuram’, widely cultivated in Ayakudi, Gopalpatti near Natham, and Andipatti village in Palani taluk.

Currently, the popular ‘Bangalura’ variety, extensively used in beverage production, is fetching only Rs 4 per kilogram – a drastic decline from its usual procurement price of Rs 12 per kg. The price of ‘Neelam’ has halved to Rs 25 per kg, while ‘Senthuram’ has dropped from Rs 30 to just Rs 10 per kg.

Surajendran, a farmer from Gopalpatti, said, “We are left with no option but to either discard the fruit or abandon harvesting altogether.”

He added that while last year’s yield was over 90 per cent, this year it has plummeted to just 40 per cent due to erratic weather patterns and climate change.

R. Sachithanantham, MP from Dindigul, has written to Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, highlighting the crisis faced by mango growers. “Last year, farmers received up to Rs 18,000 per tonne for good-quality mangoes. This year, prices have dropped to Rs 4,000 per tonne. Meanwhile, input costs have risen significantly,” he noted.

He pointed out that the lack of cold storage facilities and the absence of processing infrastructure, such as mango pulp manufacturing units, have worsened the crisis.

He urged the Centre to intervene immediately through market support mechanisms under the PM-AASHA scheme and infrastructure development support under the Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH).

Farmers are also demanding the implementation of the 20 per cent natural fruit pulp compliance norm for beverage manufacturers, replacing chemical substitutes with real fruit content. They have urged the government to empower Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs) to bypass exploitative middlemen, and implement a regulatory mechanism to break the pricing syndicates.

Sachithanantham said that urgent government action to stabilise mango prices, extend direct financial relief, and boost post-harvest infrastructure under schemes like MIDH and APEDA could rescue farmers from ruin this season.

–IANS

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