Banana farmers in Karnataka struggle with crop damage due to extreme cold
Bengaluru: Banana farmers in Karnataka are grappling with crop damage as extreme cold weather this winter threatens their harvests.
Horticulture officials stated that over 25 percent of the banana crop, particularly those at the early growing stages, would be affected as temperature dipped below 12°C, as reported by Deccan Herald on Monday.
Farmers are concerned that the ongoing cold snap could lead to long-term consequences, including a reduction in exports. Wholesale merchants have noted that the severe cold has caused banana fruits to discolour, resulting in lower market quality and a slump in export demand.
Karnataka, the third-largest banana producer in India after Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra, yielded 29.73 lakh metric tonnes in 2023-24, DH mentioned. The state's banana-growing areas include Chikkamagaluru, Shivamogga, Mysuru, and Hassan, as well as Kalaburagi, Yadgir, Bidar, and other parts of North Karnataka, where irrigation facilities support production.
“I have grown Cavendish bananas on three acres by investing Rs 4.5 lakh. I have lost a part of the crops due to heavy rainfall in August last year. Now, I am finding it difficult to get returns on my investment due to foggy and cold conditions,” Gulappa Mahadevaswamy from Dodda Katuru village in Mysuru taluk, was quoted as saying by DH.
Banana exporter Alisab Choudhari explained that cold temperatures are causing significant market rejection of the fruit, as the bananas are turning reddish and losing its quality. A farmer Shankar Myakeri from Afzalpur taluk said that around 40 percent of the crop on his 10-acre farmland would likely be damaged due to extreme cold.
Santosh Inamdar, Deputy Director of the Kalaburagi Horticulture Department, stated that approximately 4,000 hectares of banana crops in the district were more susceptible to severe cold, especially where the soil lacks zinc and boron. He advised farmers to use these micronutrients to help mitigate the damage and encourage better growth.
In light of the growing concerns, farmers have called on the government to purchase bananas at a support price to ease the financial burden. They have also demanded that a separate board be established to protect the interests of banana growers.
Meanwhile, K.B. Dundi, Additional Director of the Horticulture Department (Fruits), reassured that while damage to banana crops during winter is common, the situation is usually temporary. “It is a matter of two weeks for them to recover once summer starts,” he added.
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Iran Foreign Minister Araghchi begins 3-day India visit
New Delhi (PTI): Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi began a three-day official visit to India on Wednesday, marking the first high-level diplomatic engagement from Tehran since the outbreak of the US-Israel war with Iran more than two months ago.
Araghchi is visiting India primarily to attend a two-day meeting of BRICS foreign ministers beginning Thursday.
The Iranian foreign minister is set to hold wide-ranging bilateral talks with his Indian counterpart S Jaishankar, focusing on the escalating crisis in West Asia.
The situation surrounding the Strait of Hormuz is expected to feature prominently. The Indian side is likely to press for the safe passage of remaining merchant vessels through the strategic waterway, according to people familiar with the matter.
Araghchi and other foreign ministers of the BRICS member states are scheduled to call on Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday.
"A very warm welcome to Foreign Minister of Iran, Seyed Abbas Araghchi, on his arrival in New Delhi for the BRICS Foreign Ministers' Meeting," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on 'X'.
The escalating crisis in West Asia and its impact on the global energy supply chain are expected to dominate deliberations at the BRICS foreign ministers' meeting.
India, as the chair of BRICS, is hosting the conclave of the foreign ministers ahead of the annual summit of the grouping in September.
It will be interesting to see if the foreign ministerial conclave manages to produce a consensus statement on the conflict in West Asia.
Sharp differences among the member states over the US-Israel war on Iran stalled India's efforts to build a consensus position on the conflict during a meeting of the grouping's deputy foreign ministers and special envoys on Middle East and North America last month.
No consensus statement on the conflict could be reached largely due to differences between the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Iran. The two neighbouring countries have sparred in recent weeks over Iran's alleged attacks on energy infrastructure in the UAE.
"The active presence of the Islamic Republic of Iran in mechanisms such as BRICS represents a strategic choice to strengthen genuine multilateralism, expand equitable cooperation, and participate in shaping a more just order in international relations," Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said on 'X'.
"The BRICS foreign ministers' meeting in New Delhi can be an important opportunity for dialogue on the future of Global South cooperation, reforming international economic governance, developing independent trade, strengthening financial and banking ties, and reducing countries' dependence on discriminatory and unilateral mechanisms," he said.
Gharibabadi said Iran, with its geopolitical, energy, transit, scientific, and human capacities, can play an effective role in the BRICS agenda for balanced development, economic security, regional connectivity, and amplifying the voice of independent countries.
The Iranian deputy foreign minister is in New Delhi for the BRICS meeting.
"In this path, opposition to America's unilateral coercive measures and their illegal and anti-development effects is an inseparable part of defending economic justice and the rights of nations to development," he said.
After the West Asia conflict escalated, Iran urged India, as the current BRICS chair, to leverage its "independent role" to halt the US-Israel hostilities against Iran.
Global oil and gas prices have surged after Iran virtually blocked the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow shipping lane between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman that handles roughly 20 per cent of global oil and LNG (liquefied natural gas).
BRICS, originally comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, expanded in 2024 to include Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, and the UAE, with Indonesia joining in 2025.
It has emerged as an influential grouping as it brings together 11 major emerging economies of the world, representing around 49.5 per cent of the global population, around 40 per cent of the global GDP and around 26 per cent of the global trade.
The BRICS foreign ministers held their last meeting on the margins of the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA 80) in September 2025.
