Tender arecanuts have fallen down in large numbers due to fruit rot disease on accunt of incessant heavy rains in an areca plantation in Sullia taluk of Dakshina Kannada district
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SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
A survey conducted by the All-India Arecanut Growers’ Association has shown that the outbreak of fruit rot disease in arecanut plantations has damaged more than 50 per cent of the current crop in the arecanut-growing regions in Karnataka.
Arecanut production in Karnataka stood at 10.32 lakh tonnes from an area of 6.77 lakh hectares during 2023-24. India’s arecanut production during 2023-24 stood at 14.11 lakh tonnes from an area of 9.4 lakh ha.
Mahesh Puchhappady, President of the association, said farmers from arecanut-growing districts such as Dakshina Kannada, Udupi, Shivamogga, Uttara Kannada, Chikmagaluru, Davanagere, Tumakuru and Kodagu participated in this survey.
Nearly 95 per cent of the farmers who participated in this survey said that their plantations have been affected by fruit rot disease, and they have suffered crop loss to the tune of around 50 per cent because of this disease. About 84 per cent of farmers could not take up fungicide spraying activities in their plantations due to heavy rainfall, he said.
Even those who sprayed fungicide reported around 30 per cent crop loss in their plantations. Among these farmers, 47 per cent were successful in spraying fungicide only one time. Nearly 40 per cent of these farmers sprayed it twice during this season.
Causes, Characteristics of Fruit rot
Rotting and heavy shedding of immature nuts are the major characteristics of fruit rot disease in arecanut plantations. Continuous heavy rainfall with intermittent sunshine, low temperatures and high humidity are some of the factors that lead to the spread of fruit rot disease.
Scientists recommend spraying 1 per cent of Bordeaux mixture on the arecanut inflorescences to control this disease. Bordeaux, which is a fungicide, is a mixture of copper sulphate and calcium oxide in water.
Puchhappady urged the government to release compensation to those affected by crop loss. Steps should also be taken to release payments under the crop insurance scheme, he said.
Recently, the Central Arecanut and Cocoa Marketing and Processing Cooperative (Campco) Ltd had asked the Karnataka government to declare compensation to the arecanut growers affected by fruit rot disease in their plantations in the state.
A Kishore Kumar Kodgi, Campco President, had stated that arecanut-growing districts such as Dakshina Kannada, Udupi, Uttara Kannada, Shivamogga, and Chikkamagaluru witnessed monsoon rainfall well above the seasonal average this year. The persistent rainfall triggered a widespread outbreak of fruit rot disease this year despite farmers spraying fungicides multiple times. He had also estimated the crop loss at around 50 per cent this year.
A recent reply by the government in Rajya Sabha said that Karnataka constitutes 73 per cent of total arecanut production and 71 per cent of total area under arecanut in the country.
Published on August 21, 2025