Srikakulam: Cashew farmers demand MSP for produce

Srikakulam: The representatives of farmers' unions demanded that the government to pay minimum support price (MSP) for cashew produce.

Under the aegis of farmers unions, cashew farmers' meeting was held in Palasa on Saturday.

Speaking on the occasion, AP Rythu Sangham district secretary K Mohan Rao explained that cashew is being cultivated in 1.30 lakh acres in across the district.

A total 430 cashew dal processing units are in existence across the district and these processing units' owners are importing cashew nuts from different countries as a result price for local cashew produce is going down. With this, farmers are not even getting their investment.

The union representatives demanded Rs 16,000 for per 80 kg bag of cashew raw nuts. They also demanded the government to establish cashew development board in Srikakulam district for improvement of standards in cultivation of cashew.

In the meeting farmers unions decided to stage agitation in front of all mandal tahsildar's offices across the district on January 24 to register their grievances.