CH NEWS, MANGALURU
A truckload of synthetic and colored areca nuts that had come from Kolkata has been seized and handed over to the police station, and the police are investigating where it came from and what it contained, Minister UT Khader said.
Speaking to the media, he said, our aim is to ensure that there is no adulteration. Earlier, he had said that even if gutka and pan masala are banned, our areca nut will suffer. But I had already said that. There is a system in place to mix third-quality areca nut from Bangladesh and Nepal with our areca nut. Those who are doing such adulteration have now been caught and an investigation is underway, the Minister clarified.
The state government is planning to hold a special cabinet meeting on September 18. Important demands have been put forward before this cabinet meeting.
The Rs 5 lakh interest-free crop loan announced by the government is still limited to Rs 3 lakh in many cooperative societies. Immediate action should be taken to ensure that all eligible areca farmers get the full Rs 5 lakh loan without discrimination. Similarly, farmers have suffered severe losses due to leaf spot disease and yellow leaf disease that has spread to more than 10 villages, including Sampaje in Madikeri. Therefore,the central and state governments should jointly waive off crop loans once and abolish the interest on long-term agricultural loans at an interest rate of 3 percent.
