Chilli farmers hit by bumper crop, low prices in Telangana, Andhra Pradesh

Farmers engaged in cultivating red chillies in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh are staring at low prices for their produce due to a bumper crop this year. Prices have crashed by more than half, leaving them high and dry.

The BusinessLine reported on Saturday that as against Rs 12,000-13,600 per quintal last year, prices have dropped to Rs 4,000-6,000 this year, resulting in a peculiar situation for both farmers and traders. With the latter unwilling to pay prices demanded by the farmers, stocks are piling up in Khammam, Warangal and in Hyderabad.

"They have asked us to shun cotton due to poor demand in the international market and asked us to go for alternative crops such as maize, soya and chilli.

Attracted by high prices last year, the farmers grew chillies in much larger area this time. But the government is shying away from rescuing us," Jaipal Reddy, a farmer in Mahaboobabad told the daily.

The two states account for almost half of India's chill production of 6.85 lakh tonnes, the daily added.

The harvesting season for red chillies grown in Guntur, Warangal and Khammam in Andhra Pradesh is December to May. The Guntur Sannam-S4 variety, famous for being thick red and hot, accounts for about 2.80 lakh tonnes annually.

The Ellachipur Sannam-S4 variety is grown in



Amravati, Maharashtra and is sold mostly in Mumbai, Delhi, Ahmedabad and Nagpur. The harvesting season is September to December.

In addition to being a major commodity among spices used by Indian households, chillies are also exported from India. During the April-September period in 2016-17, India exported 1.65 lakh tonnes, earning Rs 2,307.75 crore, the IANS had reported in January this year.

In the first half of financial year 2016-17, export of spices rose 7 percent to Rs 8,415 crore, according to a statement by Spices Board in January this year.

Export of spices from India fell 11.42 percent in the financial year 2015-16 to 8.32 lakh tonnes in volume terms from 9.39 lakh tonnes in the preceding fiscal; though in value terms, they rose 12 percent to Rs 16,630 crore from Rs 14,847 crore in 2014-15. Spices exported from India mostly consist of pepper, cardamom, chilli, ginger, turmeric, coriander, garlic, tamarind, fennel and fenugreek.

Chilli is described as "the dried ripe fruit of the genus Capsicum. Capsicum annuum is an annual sub -shrub, the flowers of which are borne singly and fruits usually pendent, which provide red peppers, cayenne, paprika and chillies and sweet pepper (bell pepper) a mild form with large inflated fruits" by the Spices Board.