Diwali celebrations have already begun and tomorrow, the third day of the festival when goddess Lakshmi is worshipped, the flowers so specific is not yielding any profit to the farmers who cultivate Marigolds.
Amidst all the merriment and festive preparations, it is evidently difficult to spot even a single smile on the faces of marigold farmers, as the prices have dropped way down. The abundantly used flower is selling at a price of just Rs 100 per kg this year.
“Last year, owning to pandemic restrictions limiting interstate transport the local farmers were able to monetize on flower crops. However, this year, not only have flowers from other states been imported, but the quantity of flowers has also increased. We are, therefore, not able to quote a profitable price”, said Udaysingh Rane, a farmer from Advoi, Sattari elaborating that local marigold crops got damaged plus an abundance of flowers flowing in from the neighboring states adding to the farmers miseries.
“The government must intervene and involve the horticulture corporation to decide upon a fixed price so that we get the rates. Marigold are easy to grow in Goa’s favorable soil conditions and the flowers have a longer shelf life compared to other flowers ”, said Rane who had grown 650 marigold plants this year and harvested about 10,000 flowers since Dussehra.
Gurudas Majhik, a flower farmer from Keri had grown 1,300 marigold plants this year, due to the extended rainfall, 50% of his yield got ruined, said – “I have reduced the rates to Rs 60 per kg in an effort to sell the crop. Until last year, I was able to quote Rs 170 per kg.”
“Of the 600 crops that I grew this year, 300 were red marigold crops, all of which survived, while the yellow marigolds got infected with a plant disease” – said Prakash Paryekar, a farmer from Pali. Farmers like him who grew red marigolds alongside the yellow ones have yielded well.
“We are currently selling the flowers for Rs 130 per kg and Rs 50 per metre. However, at the last moment, prices are likely to go up to Rs 200 on the day of the festival”, a flower vendor from Panaji Market said.
