Water scarcity: Dang farmers giving up strawberry farming

SURAT: Bharat Chaudhary, a tribal farmer from Baradpani village near Ahwa in Dang district, wanted to earn big money when he was first introduced to strawberry cultivation on his two bigha land under a state government scheme sometime ago. Had be succeeded, he could have earned approximately Rs 4 lakh per season.
There are many tribal farmers like Chaudhary, who either gave up strawberry cultivation or plan to switch to growing nagli crop.Only 20 tribal farmers in Malegaon, Moti Dabhas, Laham Dabhas, Pipalwada, Ambodia, Galkund, Payarpada and four other villages in Dang now cultivate strawberries on small patches of lands. The number has come down drastically as more than 50 farmers had been initially introduced to strawberry cultivation a decade ago.
Jayram Mor, a tribal farmer in Malegaon, cultivates strawberries on his half bigha land. Since the water availability is less from the nearby check dam, he cannot expand his farm. “How can you expect to get water for farming when you don’t have water to drink. It is harvest time. I pluck fresh strawberries from the farm each day, some 20 kilogram and sell to vendors for Rs 45 per kilogram. They sell to the tourists for Rs 100 per kilogram. Had there been a cold storage facility here, we could transport our produce to Surat and nearby districts.”
Farmers from neighbouring villages in Nashik in Maharashtra have started to penetrate south Gujarat. They sell strawberries to wholesalers and are giving a tough competition to the local farmers. The strawberries are neatly packed in plastic boxes and sold to the customers at Ahwa and Saputara for Rs 100 per kilogram.
Another problem the tribal farmers face is that of cold storage. There is no such facility in Dang due to water scarcity (Cold storage facility requires water in huge quantity). Since strawberries are highly perishable and require refrigerated vans to transport to the market, the farmers don’t have the option, but to sell them to the visitors.
“We introduced strawberry cultivation a decade ago and many tribal farmers joined the scheme. But, gradually many gave up due to water and other problems,” says CG Patel, horticulture officer of Dang district.
He said if the land is properly irrigated, then the farmers could cultivate more than 2,000 kilogram of strawberries on half a bigha of land. The farmers also require cold storage facility to keep the strawberries fresh.
Bharat Kanade, agriculture officer of Dang, said, “Strawberry cultivation requires water in huge quantity. There are check dams and wells, but most of them go dry during the summer season.”