‘Legal action for tampering with fixed no. of leaves in a bundle’

Kolkata: The state Agricultural Marketing department will take action as per legal provisions against those that are selling betel leaves without adhering to the fixed number of leaves in a ‘guchi’ (bundle) as earmarked by the state government.

The state government has fixed 50 leaves to be part of a ‘guchi’ in all wholesale markets. Stockists’ procuring these will be entitled to a uniform commission of 9 per cent. Betel leaf is cultivated in 17 odd districts in the state but the majority of the production takes place at Tamluk in East Midnapore and Kakdwip in South 24-Parganas. “The wholesale markets at Tamluk have accepted the state government’s standard ‘guchi’ but in Kakdwip, the standard set is not being adhered to. We will soon start taking action against those indulging in irregularities with the sale of betel leaf,” Becharam Manna, state Agricultural Marketing minister said.

In Kakdwip there are eight wholesale markets of betel leaf located in three blocks while in East Midnapore there are 17. MLA of Patharpratima, Samir Kumar Jana said that in case of sweet betel leaf and normal betel leaf, the guchi in Kakdwip comprises 300 and 200 leaves, respectively. With the commission of stockists fixed at 9 per cent, the producing farmers are being deprived.

“I will request the concerned minister to host an exhibition in the auction markets with the district magistrates and police administration so that such unfair practice can be curbed,” Jana said.

The state government, with effect from October 1, had finally introduced parity in the auction of betel leaf by fixing the number in a single ‘guchi’ so that the farmers involved in cultivation get the same price across the state.

Three lakh farmers are associated with cultivation of betel leaf. The commission charged remained the same but as the number of betel leaves in a bundle varied, the farmers got deprived of their due share. Betel leaf is a crop that comes under the Horticulture department.

However, its marketing is overseen by the Agricultural Marketing department. The stockists buy the betel leaves from farmers and then the businessmen purchase them for export to other states.