Drought takes its toll on the yield of Bengaluru’s favourite bean

Karn. farmers face crisis as drought takes toll on avarekai crop; no rain led to wilting of plants, ₹2 lakh spent/acre w/no hopes of recovery; Raita sangha leader says weather similar to summer in March; AP crop may dominate markets, prices may rise to ₹100/kg.

The drought situation in Karnataka has taken its toll on the seasonal favourite avarekai too, leaving farmers doubting if even 5% yield can be harvested this year. Avarekai, usually hits the market around the winter season and the demand peaks during the festival of Sankranti in January. As the southwest monsoon was deficient, the rain-dependent crop has withered away in the growing regions around Bengaluru.

Trouble began for farmers from the sowing season itself as germination did not take place properly. Plants that managed to get past that stage struggled with leafing and bean formation. “Most farmers could not sow the seeds as there was no rain. Some took up sowing on small patches in their fields and even those plants wilted in the heat,” explained Anjaneya Reddy, a farmer representative from Kolar district.

Similarly, in Magadi taluk — a hub for avarekai and from where many vegetables coming to Bengaluru are grown — farmers claimed that the entire crop has been destroyed. Chennathimmaiah, a farmer from the region, said, “The crops have died without rain. No farmer in the entire taluk has had any luck with avarekai in the last three years. We spend close to ₹50,000 on cultivating each acre and this time I spent around ₹2 lakh and I have no hopes of recovering any money.” He added that farmers are expecting Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to provide them relief of ₹25,000 per acre.

Raita sangha leader Mallikarjun Kunnur said avarekai growers across the State had been affected by the unfavourable weather conditions this year. “By October, there should be light rain and a chill in the air for avarekai crop to grow well. This time, the weather is similar to that of summer in March and without that dew and misty weather, it has been a difficult time for avarekai farmers,” Mr. Kunnur said. 

The farmers also pointed out that with no regional supply of avarekai to the markets, the crop coming from Andhra Pradesh might dominate the markets in Bengaluru, leading to a steep hike in the price. “It might go anywhere from ₹60 to ₹100 a kg,” they said.