The registration of coconut growers for ball copra procurement at the support price came to an end in Hassan district on Friday afternoon as the quantity of copra allotted was fulfilled.
The NAFED is procuring 69,250 metric tonnes of ball copra from the growers in Karnataka at a support price of ₹12,000 per quintal. The quantity allotted for Hassan was 22,000 metric tonnes. At the rate of
“On Friday, by 2 p.m., the registration ended as the allotted quantity of 22,000 metric tonnes was fulfilled. The system gets locked as soon as the quantity limit is fulfilled. As many as 18,879 farmers have registered for procurement,” said Srihari, Deputy Director of Agricultural Marketing, on Friday.
The process of registration began on March 4. Within four days, the process ended, though the NAFED had set 45 days for the process. The growers, who were in a panic, stood in long queues for registration. Many slept on the premises of APMC markets in Channarayapatna, S. Belgola, Nuggehalli and other places.
Arasikere MLA K.M. Shivalinge Gowda visited the registration centre on Friday, and he was seen busy handling the crowd along with policemen. He also wielded a lathi. The MLA made arrangements for lunch for the farmers who stood in the queue, braving the hot sun.
Even after the process ended, many growers in Channarayapatna alleged that they missed the opportunity. They demanded an increase in the allocation for Hassan and continued the registration process. Similarly, the process has come to an end in Chikkamagaluru, Mandya and other districts, except for Tumakuru.
