State to buy turmeric at support price

The Karnataka government is offering a support price for turmeric cultivators in the state under the market intervention scheme.

Under the scheme, two centres for purchase of polished turmeric directly from the cultivators have been opened in two taluks of Mysore district, one each at Santhe Saragur Agricultural Produce Marketing Committee (APMC) in H D Kote and Hunsur APMC.

Processed and purified turmeric of FAQ quality will be purchased directly from the cultivators through the Taluk Agricultural Produce Co-operative Marketing Societies (TAPCMS) in these two taluks, between 10.30 am and 3 pm, Mysore Deputy Commissioner P S Vastrad said in a release.

The price offered will be Rs 5,000 per quintal. It includes the minimum price fixed at Rs 4,092 plus the incentive amount of Rs 908, he said.

May 31 will be the last date for the purchase. Farmers have to initially register to ensure the extent of area on which they have cultivated turmeric during 2011.

Purchase will be made after ensuring its quality and on a priority basis depending on the availability of grant and go-down facility, the Deputy Commissioner said, adding further details may be had from the Horticulture Department, APMC or TAPCMS.

Meanwhile, Chamarajanagar MLA H S Mahadeva Prasad has urged the government to revise the turmeric purchase order, saying the present order would cause problems for the cultivators.

Restricting the purchase to purified turmeric would not benefit farmers as non-processed turmeric alone can be stored for over a year. Farmers have been selling non-processed turmeric for several years.

If the market intervention scheme has to benefit turmeric cultivators, the order to purchase only purified turmeric therefore needs to be revised, he said.

He also demanded change in the rule restricting purchase of only 50 quintals each time.