Dairy farmers may back off strike
With dairy farmers facing severe mounting losses, there is every possibility of this group calling off the strike even as farmers were seen bringing their produce to the markets or selling vegetables on the roadsides on Wednesday.
A milk collection centre owner stated that he had begun collecting milk in Sinnar tehsil of Nashik district from Wednesday. He collects around 1200 liters milk daily and has a chilling plant capacity of 3000 liters.
“I can’t stock for more than 3 days and there is still fear in transporting the milk to the dairy, I feel that dairy farmers could be the first to withdraw from the strike if there is no solution in a day or two. Milk is perishable and villagers have drunk their fill of free milk. The animals need fodder and it is costly and dairy farmers themselves want the strike to end,” he said.
A marginal milk farmer Sampatrao Sonawane from Bhuse village of Niphad tehsil said that he used to sell the milk from his two cows. “As the milk would have got wasted, I distribute the milk among my relatives and guests and give some to the relatives in Nashik Road. I may become bankrupt if the strike continues,” he said. On the seventh day, vegetable handcarts and roadside vegetable vendors were visible in Nashik City.
“The vegetables were costly in the market, so I purchased in small quantities for sale, said vegetable seller Sukhubai Jadhav of Jagtapmala. She added that half of her customers walked off after asking the prices.
Meanwhile, though vegetables are very costly now, there is likely to be a glut once the strike is withdrawn, according to farmer Ravindra Kachru Jadhav.
Jadhav said that his neighbour had planted Simla mirchi (bell pepper). “The yield is tremendous and the harvest could be about 9 truckloads. After the strike is withdrawn, there will be a glut in the market and prices could come down to Rs 50 per crate (20 kg). A similar fate awaits other vegetables,” he said pessimistically and hoped the government could evolve a long term agriculture policy.