Ranchi, Jan 4 (NationPress) Farmers in Jharkhand are facing tremendous financial difficulties despite an abundant harvest, as vegetable prices have dramatically decreased in markets across the state over the previous week, leaving them incapable of recovering even the minimal expenses associated with cultivation.

Essential vegetables such as cauliflower, cabbage, spinach, and tomatoes are being sold for as little as Rs 5-10 per kg in the city markets of Ranchi. In rural regions, prices are even more dismal. Middlemen are reluctant to provide farmers with fair compensation, forcing many into desperate actions. In some instances, farmers are choosing to destroy their crops out of sheer frustration.

Radheshyam Mahato, a farmer from Badkipona village in Chitarpur block, crushed his cabbage crop over one acre of land by running a tractor over it. A similar incident transpired in Gola block, where another farmer destroyed his cauliflower crop due to the lack of fair pricing.

In Ormanjhi, located in Ranchi district, farmers are uprooting and discarding their vegetable crops.

Kameshwar Mahato, a farmer from Ukrid village, mentioned that he cultivated cauliflower and cabbage over five to six acres. However, with the crop selling for just Rs 2-3 per kg, he lamented that even the transportation costs to the market exceed his earnings.

Farmers from Jamhar village in Kasmar block, Bokaro district, including Ramesh Verma, Ramchandra Mahato, Lakhanlal Mahato, and Niranjan Mahato, echoed similar frustrations. After suffering crop losses due to unseasonable rains, they replanted their fields with optimism, only to confront falling market prices.

This dilemma is widespread, impacting significant vegetable-producing regions such as Itki, Bedo, and Mandar in Ranchi district, Petarwar and Kasmar in Bokaro district, Gola and Chitarpur in Ramgarh district, and Domchanch and Dhargaon in Koderma district, among others.

Shibu Mahato, a farmer from Dadpur village in Chauparan block, Hazaribagh district, stated, “Radishes and cabbages are being sold for merely Rs 4-5 per kg. Buyers from outside the region are unwilling to pay even these low rates, rendering it unfeasible to transport crops from the fields to the markets.”

Local journalist Ramdev Kesari, from Itkhori in Chatra district, pointed out that the price decline is a recurrent problem from February to April-May every year. He emphasized the urgent necessity for vegetable processing facilities and systems to guarantee equitable crop prices. “Without such initiatives, the outlook for farmers remains dire,” he noted.