TRS MP meets Ramdev, seeks support to set up Turmeric Board

Hyderabad, Sept 17: Telangana Rashtra Samiti MP Kalvakuntla Kavitha met Yoga Guru Baba Ramdev in Delhi seeking his support to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for setting up a Turmeric Board on Friday.

The TRS leader, who represents Nizamabad Lok Sabha seat in Telangana, met Baba Ramdev and requested for letter of support to Prime Minister and active intervention for the setting up of Turmeric Board for the welfare of turmeric farmers and also for the provision of a Minimum Support Price (MSP) to be given to turmeric crop.

"I have already met the Prime Minister twice in the last two years apart from Chief Ministers of Maharashtra and Kerala for their support toward this initiative," Kavitha said in a letter addressed to Baba Ramdev, a copy of which was released to media here.

"India accounts for about 80 per cent of world's turmeric production with about 1.5 lakh hectares under cultivation, with Telangana occupying almost 40 per cent of area coverage and 63 per cent in production share in which my constitutency of Nizamabad has one of the largest trading centres in the country," she said.

The separation of turmeric from other spices and creating a separate board to significantly improve the prospects of this crop is imperative, she said.

Kavitha also urged Baba Ramdev to consider setting up of a spice plant under the initiative of Patanjali group in Nizamabad to procure turmeric directly from the farmers and also other spices that are predominantly available in South India not only for consumption and sale in India, but also targetting the export market.

She assured all possible support and assistance from Telangana government to see the first Patanjali unit in South India to be established at Nizamabad and also invited him to visit Nizamabad.

PTI