Farmers suffer losses as ‘kattha’ price plummets

Rajesh Sharma

Una, December 23

Farmers of Una district are facing financial losses due to a sharp decline in the market price of catechu (kattha) this year.

A 20 to 25 per cent slump in the price of khair wood has been reported this year compared to the previous year.

A farmer, who used to get Rs 4,500 to Rs 5,000 per quintal for the khair heartwood, is now getting only Rs 3,500 to Rs 4,000 per quintal for the same weight. The price is expected to decline further.

Kattha is derived from an acacia species, locally called as known as khair, that grows abundantly in Una district. After felling, the outer bark of the stem is removed, revealing the dark-coloured heartwood, which is chipped into small pieces and boiled to separate the kattha from the wood. According to rough estimates, one quintal of heartwood gives about 10 kg of kattha.

Divisional Forest Officer RK Dogra said khair trees that grow on private land were opened for felling on rotational basis under a felling plan. He said the trees, which fulfilled the minimum girth size, were marked in the presence of the forest contractor and the farmer. The price of the commodity was settled between the two as there was no minimum support price for khair wood.

Dogra said there were 31 registered kattha boilers in the state, of which 20 were located in Una district. Each boiler produced about 350 quintals of kattha every year, making a total of 11,000 quintals. He said Mahesh Katha Udyog, situated in Oel village of Una district, produced another 7,000 quintals of the same produce every year.

In all, the DFO said the state produced about 18,000 to 19,000 quintals of kattha and the annual business was estimated at Rs 22 crore.

He said about 3 lakh khair trees were cut annually in the state to produce this amount of kattha, adding that Himachal Pradesh alone catered to about 35 to 40 per cent kattha requirement of the country.

Kamal Kishore, a farmer from Kotla village, said it took about 15 years to cultivate a khair tree, which was now not fetching due returns. Barjesh Kumar, president of the district Kattha Manufacturers Association said gambier, a similar product, was being imported from Malaysia and China. The ban imposed on the sale of gutka had adversely affected kattha trade. He said while kattha had many medicinal properties, those associated with the trade had failed to promote the product as a value addition to various food products.