HYDERABAD: The region that produces a major chunk of one of India’s essential spices – turmeric – is boiling over with resentment. Farmers in Armoor division of Nizamabad district of Telangana have been organising small protests consistently for the past week demanding that the central gover nment include turmeric in the list of crops getting minimum support price (MSP).Congress has now decided to back the protests and start a fast-unto-death from Tuesday at Mamdipalli Chowrasta in Armoor. At least 10,000 farmers are expected join the protest, claim Congress Kisan cell members.But resentment over getting less than half the cost of production has been brewing for years. Turmeric is a long duration crop that takes nine months before it is ready for harvest and requires an investment of Rs 1.5 lakh per acre. In the open market, farmers get Rs 4,000 per quintal but peg production cost at around Rs 9,000 per quintal.“We treat the turmeric crop like a goddess, and don’t even enter the field in an unclean state. Farmers are losing ?5,000 per quintal at current prices. We have no option but to sit for a fast-untodeath,” says an emotional Aloori Sai Reddy, turmeric farmer from Narayanpet Mandal in Nizamabad.“Like in case of the commodities like paddy, turmeric should be included in minimum support price list of the Union government and should not be treated like spice, but like a food crop,” says Gopidi Ganga Reddy, another farmer from Nooitipalli village in the same district.“Farmers are forced to go to Sangli in Maharashtra, 500 km away, as they get Rs 8,000 per quintal there. Officials are threatening us to prevent the protest but we will not stop,” says Anvesh Reddy, who is organising the protest.Another long pending demand is for creation of a national turmeric board, headquartered at Nizamabad. “This would help us in having links to exporters and get other benefits. We have been requesting the central government for a board for a long time,” says Kotapati Narasimham Naidu, president of Telangana Turmeric Farmers’ Association. The association is affiliated with TRS. Naidu says farmers should avoid a protest as there little that the state government can do in deciding on MSP and setting up of a board.State government officials say turmeric farmers should not undersell themselves with seed growers. “They get the seed with an agreement of very low price for the crop,” says Govindu Mekala, joint director, agriculture department. “The central government has to decide on their demands. We have sent a report to the government on the current situation here.”

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