Tumakuru coconut growers hit hard by poor market prices

Poor market prices, improper data on the crops grown and sold and diseases like stem bleeding are some of the major issues faced by farmers who grow coconut in the Tumakuru district in Karnataka.
With elections around the corner, the BJP, Congress and JD(S) have made a slew of promises for the farmers in their election manifesto.
The primary occupation of the majority of rural population in Tumakuru district is agriculture- mainly cultivation of coconuts, and allied activities.
Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha, a farmers’ association in the state has shown resentment towards the Centre’s farm policies and alleged their demand for better minimum support price has been neglected. In Tumakuru district, there are approximately 1.50 lakh hectares of land used by the farmers for coconut farming and around 50 per cent of the total population is involved in the vocation.
“The farmers in Karnataka are facing a major problem, which is price fall. The cost of cultivation of copra, recommended by the government is Rs 17,000 per quintal or Rs 170 per Kg and MSP is Rs 117 per Kg.