Palasa cashew industry sees Rs 25-cr loss

Industry lost around nine working days due to power cuts, Phailin cyclone

The cashew industry at Palasa in Andhra Pradesh has suffered a production loss of Rs 25 crore over the last two weeks due to the recent Phailin cyclone and massive power cuts owing to the Seemandhra agitation.

“The industry lost around nine working days due to the power cuts and the Phailin cyclone. Effectively, we have lost more than Rs 25 crore worth of production over the last two weeks,” Malla Srinivasa Rao, president, Palasa Cashew Manufacturers Association, told Business Standard.  

Located in Srikakulam district of Andhra Pradesh, the Pasala and Kasibugga areas have about 200 cashew processing units, which process around Rs 4 crore worth of cashew kernels per day.

Daily wage earners badly hit

During the period, around 10,000 daily workers at these units, most of them women (up to 95 per cent), have lost wages to the tune of Rs 2 crore. The cyclone has damaged 10,000 acre of cashew-growing area, which is expected to result in lower production in the next one year.

“The industry is now importing cashew nuts priced at Rs 90 per kg as against Rs 60 per kg in April, as the domestic supplies have completely dried up. In April, cashew nuts were available at Rs 75 per kg,” Srinivasa Rao said.