The Hindu Business Line : AP: Joint plan mooted to combat pest — Coconut farmers seek plan to combat mite

COCONUT farmers in Andhra Pradesh are sorely disappointed over the failure of the Government to take appropriate measures to curb the eriophyd mite which has taken a heavy toll on the crop.

The Government should act at least now to limit the damage, said Mr R. Sundara Rama Raju, President of All-India Coconut Growers' Association.

He was speaking here on Friday at an awareness programme organised jointly by the Coconut Development Board (CDB) and the State Horticulture Department.

Mr Raju said till now all steps such as root application of monocrotophos and spraying of the same pesticide had yielded little results.

The eriophyd mite originated in Kerala, spread to Karnataka and Tamil Nadu and subsequently to Andhra Pradesh, Orissa and West Bengal in that order. ``All these states and the Centre should draw up a joint action plan to combat the pest, as it recognises no political boundaries and quarantine zones should be declared to fight it effectively,'' he suggested.

He regretted that very little technical data was available on the how air-borne pest affected the crop in a particular zone.

He said the Coconut Development Board had set up a major seed-cum-demonstration farm at Vegiwada in West Godavari district, but that was not enough to develop the crop in the State, which was in the fourth position in the country after the other three southern states. There was still a lot of untapped potential, especially in the north-coastal districts of Visakhapatnam, Vizianagaram and Srikakulam.

Mr P. Narayana Swamy Naidu, Minister for Horticulture, said till now Rs 3.7 crore had been spent in different districts on combating the mite and it could be curbed to an extent. He said the drought in the State had also added to the woes of coconut farmers in the State. He promised relief and added that the necessary steps would be taken to control the mite further.

When the Minister advocated drip irrigation, some of the farmers sought to know how it would work in the rural areas where there was no assured supply of power. ``The Government has promised nine hours of power supply but in fact the supply lasts hardly three to four hours,'' they complained. The Minister pacified them saying that ``these troubles could be overcome with the assistance of the district administration''.

Some of the farmers also pleaded with the Minister that the subsidy on drip irrigation should reach the farmer directly and the companies should not be allowed to misuse it. The Minister promised them that the necessary steps would be taken.

Mr Sunil Sharma, District Collector, said an action plan would be prepared to promote the crop in Visakhapatnam. He said more processing unit should be set up for value addition and inter crops should also be encouraged. He urged banks to lend liberally to coconut farmers as well as entrepreneurs in the field.

Mr Paramjeeth Singh, Deputy Commissioner, Crops, Government of India, promised all assistance to fight the coconut mite.

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