As the potato sowing and reaping
timeline goes, farmers start loading their produce at cold storages during
March by paying an advance to procure storage authorization known as ‘bond.’
The stock starts coming out of storage from May onward depending upon market
demand and pricing level.
One of the major issue to influence
return from potato farming is inadequacy of cold storage space. But, due to
high production, the gap between demand and actual storage space has become too
wide this year making the situation critical across the state.
According to Patit Pawan Dey,
president of West Bengal Cold Storage Association, "against total storage
capacity of around 60 lakh metric tonne (mt) with around 575 cold storages, our
estimated production this year is around 110 – 115 lakh mt."
Owing to the situation, “I may need
to throw out my entire production as arranging bond has become too difficult,”
said Milan Das a ground level farmer at Dhupguri, one of the highest potato
yielding zone in northern Bengal. The picture is almost same in all potato
producing districts.
At the same time, local market
ground level price of different varieties has also come down to Rs 4 a kg at
some places while, “our production cost is over Rs 5 per kg,” said Das.
Agriculture department officials
assured, “The state Government has already intervened into the issue to bring
the situation under control.”
But, “They cannot increase storage
capacity overnight. Thus, after investing almost everything on this, now as a
penniless man, I have no option other than committing suicide,” said Jiban Das
a potato farmer in Coochbehar with around 10 tonne of his produce lying in
field under the open sky.
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