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BURDWAN: For the Mallick family in West Bengal ’s Burdwan district, farming fetched decent income for years until a surge in potato output, plunging prices and populist policies trapped them in debt.Ghulam Ambia Mallick, 42, was under enormous pressure to repay Rs 4 lakh he had borrowed for potato cultivation but failed to find buyers . He committed suicide on January 4, leaving behind his wife and two teenage sons.“He succumbed to the pressure that he was facing from the creditors who would drop in at our house often and ask for money and my husband inevitably would ask for more time to repay,” said his wife Olima Begum Mallick, a native of Jamalpur village in Burdwan.The Mallick family’s woes reflect the plight of farmers in the state that produces a quarter of India’s potatoes. The market has seen a glut for three years.The average wholesale price of potato in December fell 30% in a month to Rs 1,058 per quintal, official data show.In the previous three years, it was about Rs 950 in the same month, but was 50% higher in December 2014. In August to November 2014, the price was above Rs 2,000 per quintal.“If the cost of production was Rs 4 per kg, we had to sell it at Rs 3-3.50 per kg in the beginning of the season, and then for Rs 1.40 per kg. This happened both in 2016 and 2017,” said Fafar Molla, a potato cultivator in Jamalpur.Demonetisation, which was announced in November 2016 just when potato sowing was to begin, worsened the situation.“Cash flow in banks dried up and we had to borrow money at a higher interest from moneylenders. We are still carrying the burden of that debt. I still have a loan of Rs 60,000 to pay off,” he said.Things were much better a few years ago. Retail prices rose to Rs 24/kg, giving farmers healthy returns and middlemen a huge profit. Then the chief minister of the state, Mamata Banerjee, stepped in to control inflation.West Bengal CM banned sale of potato to neighbouring states — with disastrous consequences. Encouraged by rising prices, farmers started producing more, while neighbouring states, dismayed by the abrupt cut in supply, started cultivating the tuber themselves.Against the normal output of 95 lakh tonnes a year, Bengali farmers harvested 115 lakh tonnes in 2017, but they struggled to find buyers. Mallick, who committed suicide, could sell only a part of the produce from his field. Most of it was lying unsold in cold storage.The outlook is not promising as output is estimated to be about 110 lakh tonnes and there are huge carriedover stock. “The only way the farmers can survive is crop diversification. We are constantly telling them to look into other crops. But they are reluctant to do so. We cannot force anything,” said Pradip Mazumdar, agricultural adviser to Mamata Banerjee.Traders and small businessmen in the area are also feeling the heat of lower price realisation of the potato crop. “The consumption had gone down after demonetisation had hit in end-2016 as cash had disappeared from the system. And in last three years, sales have plummeted by almost 35-40%,” said Rabidas Rui, who runs a kirana shop in the locality.Last year was exceptionally bad for potato farmers, who expected prices to rise.Those involved in the potato trade in the state, including growers, traders and store owners, say they are staring at a loss of Rs 2,000 crore.“Many farmers and traders have loaded a higher quantity of potatoes in cold storages this year in anticipation of prices firming up on the back of lower production. But production was down by just 5-10% and the excess carry-over stock from last year dampened prices,” said Patit Paban De, a leading cold storage owner.De said since the market price was ruling lower than the loading price since October, people were not releasing their stock.Potato, which was fetching Rs 900-1,000 a quintal at the time of loading in March 2018, is currently not even fetching a price of Rs 100-125 a quintal.Better farming techniques and proper use of fertilizers have helped boost supply as yields have almost doubled in recent years. But the consumption has not kept pace.Some states such as Gujarat and Assam, which were buying potatoes from others until 8-10 years ago, have started growing the tuber in a big way. Cold storage owners that have defaulted on their loans will find it difficult to obtain fresh loans from banks this season.So they might be unable to lend to farmers and traders, thereby creating a tight liquidity situation.