Amid the steep fall in Virginia tobacco prices in the State, leaders of various farmers’ unions have decided to stage protests at tobacco auction centres on May 25. They participated in a State-level conference on “Policies to be adopted by the Central and State governments regarding tobacco procurement prices” held at N.G. Ranga Bhavan in Ongole on Monday.

Speaking on the occasion, A.P. Farmers’ Association president V. Krishnaiah said, “The nearly 40% GST hike on tobacco has become a curse for tobacco farmers. While ITC is earning profits worth thousands of crores of rupees and its shares have risen by 6.5%, tobacco farmers are losing their bargaining power because of the anti-farmer policies being pursued by the Central government.”

Addressing the media at the conference, Samyukta Kisan Morcha Prakasam district president Ch. Ranga Rao said, “Virginia tobacco should be procured at ₹30,000 per quintal. We have decided to meet Tobacco Board officials in Guntur on June 1. The Central and State governments must allocate funds, and public sector undertakings should be involved in procurement.”

A.P. Farmers’ Association Prakasam district secretary J. Jayanthi Babu said, “The auction price, which opened at ₹250 per kg last year, has started at ₹200 per kg this year. Last year, I incurred losses of ₹3-4 lakh per barn. With prices falling further this year, I stand to lose heavily again. More than 70% of the tobacco brought to auction centres is being returned.”