Cultivators suffer as wholesale price of cabbage crashes to Rs 2 per kg
SHILLONG, July 16: Meghalaya’s cabbage farmers are staring at ruin. With wholesale prices crashing to a mere Rs 2 per kg over the past two months — far below the nearly Rs 10 it costs to produce each kilo — cultivators say they are forced to sell at a heavy loss or watch their produce rot.
On Thursday, the Hills Farmers’ Union (HFU) staged an unusual protest on the State Central Library premises here, distributing around six tonnes of cabbages free to the public. The produce, brought in three pickup trucks from Mawpyrshong, Thynroit, Mawlali, Thangsning and other villages in the Smit area, was given away after farmers concluded there was no viable market left for them.
Scores of people stopped to collect the vegetables and speak with the growers.
HFU general secretary Alfondbirth Kharsyntiew said the free distribution reflected the grim reality facing farmers.
“When farmers receive only Rs 2 per kg, there is no point in selling because it does not even cover the cost of cultivation. The question is who is making the profit when consumers are paying Rs 30 or Rs 40 per kg,” he said, pointing to the huge gap between farm-gate and retail prices.
One farmer explained the arithmetic of loss: cultivating cabbage on 100 terraces costs nearly Rs 60,000 and yields about 6,000 kg. At Rs 2 per kg the return is only Rs 12,000 — a loss of Rs 48,000 in a single season. Seeds, fertilisers, pesticides, labour, transport and loan repayments make farming impossible at current prices, they said. Many are struggling to repay agricultural loans and meet household expenses, including children’s education.
“We would rather give the vegetables away than sell them at prices that only deepen our losses,” one grower remarked. “We would rather feed people than allow truckloads of fresh produce to rot.”
The union had met East Khasi Hills Deputy Commissioner Abhilash Baranwal on Wednesday and urged the administration to monitor agricultural prices.
While the government fixes rates for PDS commodities, Kharsyntiew said a similar mechanism is needed for farm produce.
“We are not even asking for a Minimum Support Price because that is a Central subject. At the very least, the government should work out a Minimum Input Price based on the cost of cultivation,” he said.
The issue has been raised repeatedly by the HFU and was also discussed during the Meghalaya Farmers’ Parliament. The union will soon convene its executive committee to decide its next course of action if the crisis remains unresolved.
Thursday’s free distribution involved roughly 6,000 kg of cabbages, with each truck carrying nearly two tonnes. Any voluntary donations received will be handed over to the farmers, Kharsyntiew said.
The protest drew support from the Voice of the People Party (VPP) Youth Wing and Women’s Wing, whose members joined in solidarity and backed the demand for fair prices and greater government intervention.
The HFU has urged the state government to engage farmers and experts on long-term solutions — better market regulation, transparent pricing and policies that guarantee fair returns. Agriculture remains the backbone of Meghalaya’s economy and food security, the union stressed.
“As one farmer rightly said, the world will come to an end if the farmers disappear,” Kharsyntiew concluded.
