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Chennai, Feb 7: Farmers across the rain-fed belts of Thoothukudi district have urged the Union government to extend the Minimum Support Price (MSP) mechanism to maize cultivated during the Rabi season, warning that the sharp fall in market prices has pushed them into financial distress.
Maize, which is largely grown in the district after the northeast monsoon, is currently being procured by private traders at nearly ₹1,800 per quintal. Farmers say this is a steep decline compared to last year’s Rabi season price of around ₹2,500 per quintal and is far below the cost of cultivation.
With harvesting set to intensify in the coming weeks, they fear the rates could fall further. The acreage under maize has also risen significantly this year. Nearly 1.85 lakh acres have been brought under cultivation, up from 1.5 lakh acres last season.
The increased output has resulted in a glut in local markets, further depressing prices. Harvesting is underway in Ottapidaram, Ettayapuram, Vilathikulam, Pudur, Kovilpatti and Kayathar taluks.
R. Muthuraj, a farmer from a village near Kovilpatti, said the current price does not even cover production expenses such as seeds, fertilisers, labour and irrigation.
“If we sell at this rate, we are only incurring losses. There is no profit left for us,” he said.
Another cultivator, S. Rajendran from the Vilathikulam region, warned that prices may dip even lower once peak arrivals begin in March. He added that most small farmers lack storage facilities to hold their produce and wait for better prices.
Though the Union government had announced an MSP of ₹2,400 per quintal for maize during the 2025–26 kharif season, farmers in Tamil Nadu say the benefit is largely irrelevant since maize is predominantly grown as a Rabi crop in the state.
Leaders of local farmers’ associations have appealed for the MSP to be extended to Rabi maize as well. They argue that if maize is included under the MSP list, regulated markets could procure the crop through government agencies, similar to pulses, thereby protecting growers from exploitation.
Officials from the regional regulated market committee confirmed that a proposal has been forwarded to the Union government seeking MSP coverage for Rabi maize, stating that procurement can begin only after formal notification and Cabinet approval.
—IANS