Kota News Desk: Garlic prices have reached all-time high this time. Garlic was sold for up to Rs 40 thousand a quintal. Due to this the farmers got upset. Encouraged by good sentiments, farmers have sown garlic extensively in Hadoti this time. The sowing figure is highest this time. Excess production should not become a problem for the farmers, because there are no garlic processing units in Hadoti. Its storage is also difficult during the season. Therefore, the government needs to attract investors to set up garlic processing units. According to the Agriculture and Horticulture Department, till now garlic has been sown in 1 lakh 5 thousand 77 hectares in Hadoti, which is more than double as compared to last year. Last year, garlic was sown in only 48 thousand 29 hectares in Hadoti. Kota division ranks first in garlic production in the state.
Difficult to store in summer
Garlic processing units are needed. Many products can be made including garlic paste. One of its plants was also started in Jhalawar. Farmers suffer losses due to lack of processing. We have seen this scene in Hadoti in 2017. Many farmers died of shock after not getting the price for garlic. After this, the Central Government started purchasing garlic under the Market Intervention Scheme. There is a need to set up processing units. The government also gives subsidy for setting up food processing units. In such a situation, investors should be invited. Temperature of 30 to 35 degrees is suitable for storing garlic. After this, when the temperature increases, the garlic starts spoiling. Last season, a large amount of garlic was damaged due to extreme heat. Farmers had to keep coolers and fans in their homes and are also demanding the government to declare the minimum support price for garlic. To keep the market stable, purchases should be made at MSP.
Dashrath Kumar, farmer leader
Due to sufficient water in dams and good prices, farmers have sown more garlic. So far, more than one lakh hectares of garlic has been sown in Kota division.
RK Jain, Joint Director, Agriculture Extension Kota
The dark chapter is related to garlic
In 2017, a dozen farmers in Hadoti died of shock after not getting the price for their garlic crop. After this, the issue of farmers’ suicide was echoed across the country.
Estimated production of 7 to 8 lakh metric tons
Horticulture experts estimate that this time due to good rains in Hadoti, the dams are full to the brim. Garlic crop requires watering six to seven times. There will be no problem of irrigation due to sufficient water. For this reason, the production of garlic in Hadoti alone is estimated to be 7 to 8 lakh metric tons.
