Take kinnow to Ayodhya, use it for langar on January 22: Farmers to Govt

Farmers of Abohar, which is the main kinnow belt of Punjab, are so pained by the price crash that they are appealing to the central government to take this fruit to Ayodhya to organise langar on the Ram temple inaugural event on January 22.

Gurpreet Singh, a progressive farmer of Patti Sadik village from Abohar, told The Indian Express, “As we are getting rates as low as Rs 4 or Rs 5 a kg after spending so much on our kinnow orchards, it’s not worth the investment in terms of time, effort and money. The returns are nothing to boast of, it’s just peanuts. I appeal to the Centre to get these fruits plucked from our fields and take them to Ayodhya for organising langar on the occasion of the Ram Mandir inauguration on January 22. We don’t even have a budget for getting the fruit plucked, and so the central government should also arrange for it.”

Darshan Singh, a farmer from Giddranwali village in Abohar, said, “Yes, it is better if this fruit can be used in langar in Ayodhya. BJP leaders can arrange for plucking the fruit from our orchards. The low rate is a result of cartelisation of wholesale fruit purchasers.”

Gurpreet Singh added, “Punjab Agro – an agri-processing organisation in the state – is giving statements that it will be launching OreGin – a scotch made from kinnow – in Punjab market, but it hasn’t purchased any kinnow from us till now. Horticulture Minister Chetan Singh Jauramajra had stated that a kinnow waxing plant in Abohar would start by January 10 but it is yet to see the light of day. When we are given no support from the Punjab government, why should we continue growing kinnow. It is better to grow crops that give minimum support price (MSP).”

Sukhmander Singh, president of BKU Rajewal (Fazilka district), said, “Kinnow is grown in Abohar (Fazilka district) and Hoshiarpur, but most of it is grown in Abohar in Punjab. If farmers opting for diversification are not supported, then why they should continue cultivating new crops. This year many farmers have planned to uproot kinnow orchards.” Darshan Singh said that Punjab Agro officials had told them that they will start taking kinnow from farmers from mid-February. But it will be too late by then, as natural dropping of fruit will happen by that time, he added.

Around 13.5 lakh metric ton of kinnow is expected from this season (from November to March) in Punjab, sources in Horticulture department said. Last year 12 lakh metric ton of kinnow had come in the market.

Abhohar MLA Sandeep Jakhar (of the Congress) said, “The major problem this year is the bumper crop, because of which the prices have crashed. Although the Punjab government had announced this year that it would chip in if the rates fall, it hasn’t done anything yet except for making such claims.”