Dismal Price Makes Kurnool Chilli Growers Plough Back Crop

Kurnool:Chilli farmers in Pathikonda area of Kurnool district are using tractors to plough back their green chilli crops, as market prices of chilli are not even covering payment to labourers picking the crop. While tomato and onion yields are fetching decent prices, chilli farmers are a disappointed lot. Total area cultivated with chillies this season stands at around 60,000 acres, with investment per acre ranging from ₹60,000 to ₹80,000 per acre.With green chillies currently selling for just ₹20–30 per kilogram—dropping even to ₹10 per kilogram, many farmers are opting not to bring their crops to the market. They point out that a 20-kg bag of chilies is not even fetching ₹100–120.

Krishnaiah, a farmer from Pandikona in Pathikonda mandal, pointed out that cultivating green chilies on one-and-a-half acres of his land had cost him over ₹1 lakh. Raghavendra, another farmer, said he ended up spending more than ₹60,000 to cultivate chillies on his one-acre land, hoping for a good price. He pointed out that a bag of 20 kg is not even fetching ₹100, while harvesting requires at least five labourers, who need to be paid ₹300 each per quintal.Raghavendra pointed out that money earned from selling chilies will not even cover his labour costs.

Having waited long enough for prices to rise, both Krishnaiah and Raghavendra are ploughing back their crop using tractors.

In Kurnool's Rythu Bazaar and other markets, chilli prices vary based on quality and variety. But the price is typically ranging from ₹20-30 per kilogramme, falling to even ₹10–15 per kilogramme.

In hindsight, Krishnaiah and Raghavendra say they should have planted tomatoes or onions, whose prices are somewhat better.

Marketing officials are attributing the low prices to abundant stock and lack of consumer demand.