Rain destroys 82,000 tonnes of coffee crop

• Coffee Board seeks aid from Centre

Bengaluru: Owing to heavy rains in the coffee tracts of Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu  82,000 tonnes of coffee crop has been lost estimates the Coffee Board. Therefore, it  has recommended to the Centre to consider a special relief package for coffee growers.

The Board issued a press release which said that a preliminary assessment of crop loss in all the major zones during the third week of August was conducted, losses identified, and reports sent to both the State and Union governments.

The highest loss is in Karnataka, followed by Kerala and Tamil Nadu. The Coffee Board staff have been deployed in calamity-hit areas and are working with the revenue administration to assess damage and offer preliminary relief, said the release.

A meeting with all the growers’ associations will be called in the second week of September, it added.