Himachal farmers protest low market rates for apples, demand MSP

SHIMLA: Sanyukt

Kisan Manch

, a farmers' body representing over 20 outfits, protested outside the office of the district collector here on Monday against the sudden drop in market prices of apples and demanded government intervention in buying them at Minimum Support Price (

MSP

). The farmers also demanded that the government should buy the crop on the lines of Jammu and Kashmir through National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India.

Its leader

Kuldeep Singh Tanwar

said they would submit a memorandum to the deputy commissioner in this regard. "We are giving 15 days to the government to consider our demands. If not considered, we will hold large dharnas against the Jai Ram Thakur government," said Tanwar.

The Sanyukt Kisan Manch has decided to call a bandh on September 27 if the government do not take any action against the plummeting prices of the apples.

"If the support price for garlic in Kerala is Rs 140 a kg, why it is only Rs 39 in Himachal Pradesh. We are also demanding the support prices for apple to be on the pattern of Jammu and Kashmir. We are demanding similar prices for other cash crops in the state," said Tanwar.

He added out of the 9,86,000 farmer families in Himachal Pradesh, 2 lakh are involved in apple farming. "The main GDP of Himachal Pradesh comes through the farming of apples," said Tanwar.

The protesting farmers claimed that the apple economy is shrinking in the state due to big players' impact on the market prices.

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