Ahead Of Pongal, Sugarcane Production In Tamil Nadu Suffers Due To Yellow Leaf Disease

Pongal is one of the biggest festivals that is celebrated in Tamil Nadu. It is known as the harvest festival, which brings good luck and prosperity to the lives of farmers. It is celebrated in the month of January and is dedicated to the Sun God. All the farmers celebrate this festival with their families and members of their villages. Usually, the festival lasts for 3–4 days, and different activities are planned for each day. The harvest festival is celebrated differently in every state. This year, Pongal will be held from January 15 to January 18. The preparations are going on in full swing. Sugarcane is also considered important for the celebration of Pongal. Now, it has been found that there has been a shortage of sugarcane in some of the areas in the state.

As Pongal is just around the corner, sugarcane harvesting is going to be done in a few days. In this situation, the production of Achu Vellam – that is a kind of sweet produced from sugarcane and is required for Pongal – is going on a small scale in around 30 villages including Ayyampettai, Veeramangudi, Ganapati Agraharam, and Thanjavur district. Recently, the number of sugarcane producers has gone down due to the attack of yellow sugarcane disease. This has led to a shortage of workers and continuous price drops. More than hundreds of factories were closed down. Apart from using sugarcane for Pongal, they are also used for printing garments.

Arvind, a farmer who is doing this business in the Ganapathi Agraharam area, said, “We have been doing the business of making print jaggery for generations. We have about 20 acres of agricultural land. Every year we plant only sugarcane, but now, due to the attack of yellow diseases on sugarcane, the sugarcane is not growing. This year, we are forced to grow paddy in place of sugarcane. Our workers have been greatly affected by it. Currently, as the festival of Pongal is approaching, the production of printed jaggery is going on briskly in only a few factories.”

He has also appealed to the authorities to take action against the yellow sugarcane disease and provide alternative benefits to the farmers.