Multai, August 7, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Coriander farmers in Multai and adjoining villages of Madhya Pradesh’s Betul district are facing a severe price crisis, with mandi rates reportedly falling to as low as Rs 1 per kg and some cultivators choosing to destroy their mature crop rather than incur further losses.
Farmers in Duni, Sipawa, Barkheda and Mohi villages have reportedly begun using tractors to flatten standing coriander fields. Hundreds of acres of ready crop are said to have been destroyed as growers struggle to recover even the basic costs of harvesting and transporting the produce.
Cultivators told IANS that at the prevailing market price, selling the crop does not cover expenses related to harvesting, labour, packaging, handling and transportation.
“What is the point of spending money on labour and transport when the crop will not even fetch the cost of harvesting?” a farmer said.
Photographs and videos circulating on social media show green coriander fields being flattened, highlighting the extent of the distress. Farmers said they had invested in seeds, fertilisers, irrigation and labour but were now facing prices far below their production costs.
District Collector Saurabh Sanjay Sonwane told IANS that the matter had not yet come to his notice. He, however, said possible assistance would be considered if the situation was confirmed.
Farmers are seeking a minimum support price (MSP) mechanism for coriander, along with assured procurement and other measures to protect growers from sharp market fluctuations. They said the absence of price stabilisation mechanisms leaves spice cultivators particularly vulnerable when market prices collapse.
The destruction of mature crops has also raised concerns over agricultural wastage and mounting financial losses for farming families.
Multai is not among Madhya Pradesh’s major coriander-producing regions. Guna and Neemuch are the state’s principal production centres, with Guna particularly known for the ‘Kumbhraj’ variety, which is also exported to some countries, according to the Economic Survey of Madhya Pradesh 2025-26.
The survey estimates Madhya Pradesh’s coriander production at 4,84,787.87 tonnes from 1,17,498.65 hectares in 2024-25. Overall, the area under spices increased from 9.07 lakh hectares in 2023-24 to 9.42 lakh hectares in 2024-25, while production rose from 55.38 lakh metric tonnes to 57.43 lakh metric tonnes.
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