Abhaysinh Rathod,45,a farmer at Tundao village in Savli taluka near Vadodara,says he was contemplating suicide for failing to repay a loan amount of Rs 7 lakh to banks after price of tobacco fell sharply two years ago,never to recover again. Rathod has taken loan to build a godown about four years ago when the price of tobacco peaked at Rs 1,200 per 20 kg against the cultivation cost of Rs 300 per 20 kg. That was boom time. I even bought a tractor,which I had to surrender to the bank later, says Rathod,who now plans to sell off his 7 acres of land to investors or industry to replay the loan amount. Not long ago,more than two-third farmers in Savli grew tobacco. In the last two years alone,this has come down to 15%. The figure is likely to come down further this year as tobacco gives way to more profitable crops such as castor and cotton. As per data provided by the state agriculture department,tobacco sowing area so far in this year is down at 25 hectares,or just 5% of normal sowing area of 466 hectares,reflecting a sharp fall in cultivation mainly in Anand,Kheda and Vadodara districts where most of the tobacco is grown. Like Tundao village,farmers in tobacco-growing villages in Anand district have also reduced tobacco cultivation over the last three years due to falling prices of their produce. With kharif season currently on,farmers in Tundao and other villages in Savli have started sowing castor,and some are even sowing cotton. Farmers in Anand and Kheda districts also are looking for alternative to tobacco,with many switching over to banana and chilli. The reason is not hard to comprehend. Until 2008-2009,tobacco sold in the range of Rs 1,200-Rs 1,500 per 20 kg,which was profitable for farmers. But prices fell sharply the very next year,and has never recovered, says Ranjitsinh Rathod,a farmer in Tundao who holds nearly 25 acres of land. In this region,traders bought tobacco at the rate of Rs 350 per 20 kg two years ago against the cultivation cost of Rs 550 per 20 kg,resulting in huge losses to tobacco farmers. While traders argued that falling bidi production had reduced demand for tobacco,many farmers decided not to sell tobacco,which resulted in creation of large inventory. A huge inventory of tobacco has piled up at my godown in the last two years with no takers. As time passes,quality of tobacco also deteriorates, Ranjitsinh said. Several farmers here,who have been left debt-laden due to sharp and sudden fall in tobacco prices,have decided to sell off their land to repay the loans or to run household. In tobacco-growing villages in Anand district,the situation is more or less the same. Almost 90% of farmers grew tobacco within 30-km range from our village till two years ago,but most of them stopped growing it after they received very low prices for their produce in 2010 and 2011. Now,they are wary of growing tobacco. Farmers here are now growing banana and chilli, said Vikram Patel,a farmer from Kunjrao village in Anand district,a major tobacco growing region in the state. In most tobacco growing region,farmers received as less as Rs 200-250 per 20 kg for tobacco,which has dissuaded farmers from growing tobacco anywhere in Gujarat, Bhikhubhai Patel,president of Gujarat Tobacco Manufacturers Association,said.
