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Toddy tappers in dire straits
Abagoni Ramakrishna, 27 of Kalimera village, the epicentre if one may call for toddy tapping in Telangana, is a distraught man for he throws away 10 to 12 bottles of toddy every day as there are no takers. Ramakrishna is not alone there are 10 lakh other toddy tappers like him in Nalgonda who throw away a lot of toddy every evening.
Nalgonda: Abagoni Ramakrishna, 27 of Kalimera village, the epicentre if one may call for toddy tapping in Telangana, is a distraught man for he throws away 10 to 12 bottles of toddy every day as there are no takers. Ramakrishna is not alone there are 10 lakh other toddy tappers like him in Nalgonda who throw away a lot of toddy every evening.
While neighboring states such as Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala are marketing neera and reaping dividends, toddy tappers in Telangana do not extract neera. Neera is a sap extracted from inflorescence of palm trees before sunrise; the same liquid if tapped at noon is toddy.
Production of toddy has not decreased but consumers have, says Yadaiah Kammampaty, a toddy tapper. Spurious toddy sold in Hyderabad, equating toddy with alcohol, lack of awareness on the health benefits and deaths after consuming adulterated toddy with benzodiazepines and barbiturates has had an impact on the demand for toddy.
The need of the hour is to package neera as a health drink and make the research centre on toddy at Nandanam village near Bhongir that is defunct for over three decades to become functional, says Gundala Mallesh, general secretary, Telangana Gouda Welfare Society.
He adds, “30 lakh people in the state depend directly or indirectly on toddy for livelihood. In Kerala jaggery, cakes, chocolates and handicrafts from palm leaves have turned around the sector and is paying dividends.
The government here needs to step in and do something. Else toddy tapping will die,” he bemoaned.
Just 10 years ago, there were eight lakh toddy tappers in Telangana. Now the number has reduced to five lakh.
Since 2006, 800 toddy tappers suffered injuries and many died and a majority of them still have not received ex gratia. Ex gratia amounting to Rs 4 crore is pending from the government till date.
In a recent incident, Kammampeta Somiah, 50, fell from a tree and spent close to Rs 3 lakh for injuries sustained on hip and legs.
“I went to a private hospital Apsara in Nalgonda from a government hospital as the treatment was not good. I have not received any help from the government,” he said. The Telangana government announced that ex gratia would be hiked from Rs 50,000 to Rs 5 lakh but it is not implemented and there is no GO to this effect.
Demands from toddy tappers include removing regulations of toddy sector from the Excise department and having cooperative societies instead. Every toddy tapper pays Rs 900 per year towards tax.
This has to be removed and if small scale units could be established to collect toddy and market it by making by products. There are 8,000 societies in the state and toddy tappers have been clamouring for help from the government.
