Sowing of B potato is going to start soon and the price of potato has skyrocketed at this time. In such a situation, farmers of North India can take more interest in potato farming in the hope of getting better prices. Garden and horticulture experts point out that the farmers are quite excited this time and they can become more interested in potato farming in the hope of getting a good price for the early crop during the Rabi season. During the Rabi season, potato is cultivated in Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Bihar, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Assam, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Haryana.
Dr. Manoj Kumar, who comes under the Indian Council of Agricultural Research and the Executive Director of Central Potato Research Institute, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, told that farmers in North India have started preparing potato cultivation and sowing will start in a few days. , In the rabi season, potato sowing usually starts in late September and lasts till November, while harvesting runs from December to March.
Dr. Kumar told that there is no doubt that the increase in the prices of potato will increase the interest of farmers in its cultivation, which will increase the acreage of potato crop especially in North India. Dr. Kumar said that many such varieties of potatoes have come now which gives higher yield than before.
According to the second advance production data released by the Union Ministry of Agriculture, the production of potatoes in the country during the year 2019-20 was 513 lakh tonnes, while the production of potatoes in the country was 501.90 lakh tonnes a year ago in 2018-19. Despite higher production, this year, its price has increased considerably. Traders say that at the end of the Rabi season, where the potato was five rupees a kg, today it is being sold above 40 rupees per kg. Traders say that during the Corona period, potato consumption was higher this year and inward arrivals are decreasing in this market.
In Uttar Pradesh, Horticulture Department Officer Dr. Dharmapal Yadav said that during the preparation of crop in the last Rabi season in Uttar Pradesh, there was some damage to the crop due to rain, which reduced the production slightly. Uttar Pradesh is the largest producer of potatoes in the country. About 30 percent of the total production of potato is produced in Uttar Pradesh. Potato farming is widespread, especially in western Uttar Pradesh.
Dr. Yadav also said that due to the high price of potato, farmers’ interest in its cultivation will increase, which may lead to more acreage this year than last year.
National President of the Indian Farmers’ Organization, Rajendra Yadav, says that farmers are undoubtedly excited about planting the next crop of potatoes due to the increase in prices, as well as worrying about the cost of seeds. Yadav said that it often happens that when the price of potato used for vegetables is high, the price of seed also increases.
Potato farming is done in Maharashtra, Uttarakhand, Karnataka, Himachal Pradesh and Tamil Nadu during the Kharif and Summer seasons. The kharif potato sowing season is from May to July, while the harvesting season lasts from September to November. Kharif potato production is very low, so farmers of this season get good prices, while the production is much lower in the harvesting season due to higher production in the Rabi season.
Businessmen said that at present, fresh hill potatoes are coming in along with cold storage potatoes in the mandis of North India including the capital of the country. Hill potatoes are sold at a higher price, while potatoes coming from cold storage are sold at a lower price.
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Source: investmentguruindia.com