Cotton farmers cry foul as Kaveri Seeds dupes them

Vijayawada: Cotton farmers in Krishna district have allegedly been duped by a private seed company, by supplying low quality cotton seeds. They have taken up cultivation in the upland villages of Jaggaiahpet, Nandigama, Mylavaram and Tiruvur Assembly segments.

Farmers are worst hit, with the crop failing on two counts---series of cyclones and rain and spurious seeds.

They opted for the ‘Jadoo’ variety seeds of Kaveri Seed Company this year, following its wide publicity, claiming high yield.

The company had hired several film actors to promote ’Jadoo’ with promises of high yield. While it doubled the market share from five per cent in 2011-12 to ten per cent in 2012-13, along with its other popular brand ‘Jackpot’, farmers in the district allege that their loss was twice the annual return. According to unofficial sources, farmers used the ‘Jadoo’ variety in more than 300 acres, 150 acres in Mylavaram and Tiruvur and the same area in Jaggaiahpet and Nandigama segments.

They say the crop developed moisture and lost colour in hundreds of acres, resulting heavy loss to them. They had invested around Rs 25,000-30,000 per acre and lost almost everything.

Farmers in Kanchikacharla mandal of Nandigama, A Kondur mandal of Tiruvur and G Kondur mandals of Mylavaram are worst hit, by crop failure.

They accuse the company of supplying spurious seeds, resulting in heavy loss. Farmers are getting ready for a show-down with the company, whose representatives did not even care to visit them despite repeated requests.