The unprecedented high yield of Totapuri mangoes this year have prompted the State government to roll out a support plan on war footing to prevent distress sales by farmers. Transport Minister Mandipalli Ramprasad Reddy, also the in-charge minister of Chittoor district, on Wednesday, reiterated that the government was committed to protecting the interests of mango farmers.

Speaking to the media here, the Minister said that as per official data, Totapuri mango production peaked from 2.5 lakh metric tonnes last year to 6.5 lakh metric tonnes this year. “This massive yield led to the nosedive of the mango prices. Despite that, the Chief Minister announced a Minimum Support Price (MSP),” the Minister said. He added that the government was currently offering ₹4 per kg as direct procurement support, and the share of the pulp units has been fixed at ₹8 a kg, totalling to ₹12 a kg.

Mr. Reddy said that letters were addressed to the Centre requesting ₹130 crore under the Market Intervention Scheme. “As of now, 3.08 lakh tonnes of mangoes are being procured across Chittoor, Tirupati, and Annamayya districts. Another 81,000 tonnes were sold to other States through ramps and markets. This had benefitted around 50,922 farmers. The government has also blocked the inflow of Totapuri mangoes from neighbouring Karnataka and Tamil Nadu to support local markets,” Minister Reddy said. Further efforts are under way to reduce GST on mango pulp from 12 to 5 per cent, which in turn would assist the pulp industries, the Minister added.