Bardhaman Potato Farmers Abandon Commercial Cultivation Amid Price Crash

• Purba Bardhaman farmers, despite a good potato yield, face severe losses due to market price collapse and absence of wholesale traders.
• Farmers declare they will only cultivate potatoes for self-consumption from next year, abandoning commercial farming.
• Cultivation cost is 35,000 rupees per bigha, but potatoes sell for only 180-220 rupees per sack, down from 470 rupees last year, with no buyers.
• Jagabandhu Mondal of Paschim Banga Pragatisheel Alu Byabsayee Samiti attributes price fall to good yield and traders' export losses over 5-6 years.
• Farmers like Tushar Kanti Ghosh from Chhotobeloon are in despair, unable to recover costs or sell their produce.