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Bargarh: For Lingaraj Dehuri, months of hard work and an investment of Rs 30,000 ended not at the marketplace but with a painful decision to chop down his standing brinjal crop. With prices crashing to Rs 3-4 per kg, the farmer from Deheripali village under Bheden block found little reason to continue harvesting his produce.
Cultivated on one acre, the crop was planted in June. Inadequate rainfall in August affected its growth, but just as the plants began bearing fruit, a steep fall in prices dealt another blow. Selling the brinjals at the prevailing rate would not even help him recover his cultivation costs.
His decision has brought into focus the distress faced by vegetable growers in the district, who often struggle to find buyers and secure remunerative prices for perishable produce.
Farmers’ ordeal
Two days before destroying his crop, Lingaraj and other brinjal farmers had approached the Bargarh Collector, demanding a minimum support price (MSP) and a dedicated mandi. They alleged that no concrete intervention followed even after they waited for 48 hours.
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For Lingaraj, the struggle is not new. He claimed that he had not received a farmer identity card last year and had staged a 72-hour hunger strike outside the Collector's office over the issue. Farmers also distributed brinjals among officials, traders and members of the public during their protest to highlight their plight.
United Farmers' Organisation convenor Ramesh Mahapatra blamed flawed policies and inadequate market support, demanding clear procurement guidelines, minimum prices and proper mandi facilities. Encouraging crop diversification without financial and marketing safeguards, he warned, could turn farming into a gamble.
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