With just 3 varieties on offer, authorities raise hackles of farmers at seed mela

Nagarkurnool: A large number of farmers who visited the Palam Agriculture Research centre in Nagarkurnool district to attend the Seed Mela programme, being widely publicised in newspapers, were disheartened as the authorities of the mela failed to provide different varieties of seeds. Protesting the nonchalant attitude of officials concerned, they staged a sit-in on Srisailam highway and blocked the road for few minutes seeking the authorities concerned to provide more varieties of seeds at the mela.

As many as 300 farmers who came from as far as Achampet, Jadcherla, Mahbubnagar, Gadwal and other faraway places were given only three varieties of seeds prepared by the Agriculture research centre.

"They publicised in newspapers of conducting a seed mela with different varieties of seeds. In the hope of getting good seeds of different varieties of jowar, maize and millets, I have come to Palam seed mela all the way from Jadcherla. But to our utter shock, the authorities have put on display only three varieties which are commonly available everywhere. We were not even given the seeds of Yellow Jowar and Maize. Why should the authorities' term it as seed mela, when they have put on display only three varieties of seeds and causing inconvenience to farmers?" asked Ram Chander, a farmer from Jadcherla.

The agitating farmers urged the authorities to act fast and make available various seed varities at the mela at the earliest.