Siddaramaiah urges Naidu to lift ban on transport of Totapuri mangoes
Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah has written to his Andhra Pradesh counterpart N Chandrababu Naidu, requesting the immediate withdrawal of a ban on the entry of Totapuri mangoes from Karnataka into Chittoor district. The directive, reportedly issued on June 7 by the Chittoor district collector, has triggered concerns in Karnataka over its impact on inter-state trade and farmers' livelihoods.
In his letter dated June 11, Siddaramaiah called the move unilateral and said it undermined the spirit of cooperative federalism. He cautioned that such decisions, made without consultation or coordination, could provoke tensions and lead to retaliatory actions, further straining the movement of goods between states.
'I am writing to convey my deep concern over an order reportedly issued by the district collector of Chittoor on June 7, imposing a ban on the entry of Totapuri mangoes from other states into the district,' the chief minister stated. 'I understand that multidisciplinary enforcement teams comprising officials from the revenue, police, forest, and marketing departments have been deployed at the inter-state check-posts adjoining Tamil Nadu and Karnataka to implement this directive.'
The clampdown has caused alarm in Karnataka's border regions, particularly in Kolar district's Srinivasapura taluk, where Totapuri mango cultivation is a key source of income for farmers. Protests erupted in the area on Wednesday, with farmers staging a taluk-level bandh to demand both a support price for mangoes and a rollback of the ban imposed by Andhra Pradesh.
The Karnataka government has already initiated communication at the bureaucratic level. Chief secretary Shalini Rajneesh wrote to her Andhra Pradesh counterpart K Vijayanand on June 10, urging the revocation of the ban.
Siddaramaiah highlighted the economic fallout of the ban, saying the disruption of established supply chains between Karnataka's growers and Chittoor's mango processing units could result in major post-harvest losses.
'The current restriction has disrupted this well-established supply chain and threatens significant post-harvest losses, directly impacting the livelihoods of thousands of farmers,' he wrote. 'I am also concerned that this may lead to avoidable tension and retaliatory measures, with stakeholders already expressing discontent that could potentially disrupt the inter-state movement of vegetables and other agricultural commodities.'
The chief minister appealed to Naidu to intervene and issue appropriate directions to district officials to reverse the order.
'I trust that you will treat this issue with the seriousness it warrants, and take swift steps to restore the seamless movement of agricultural produce in the interest of farmer welfare,' he said.
Totapuri mangoes, widely grown in Andhra Pradesh's Chittoor district and mainly supplied to pulp manufacturing units, have seen a sharp fall in prices over recent years. While the district administration had fixed a rate of ₹30,000 per tonne last year, it has been revised to ₹12,000 per tonne this year due to market conditions.
Andhra Pradesh government officials speaking on the condition anonymity said market prices have dropped to ₹5–6 per kg. To support farmers, the government has set a procurement price of ₹8 per kg for pulp units and is offering an additional ₹4 per kg as support, enabling farmers to earn ₹12 per kg. In contrast, Karnataka has not announced any price support, and mangoes from there are reportedly being sold at ₹5–6 per kg, leading to pricing concerns.
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