Cardamom auctions have been brought a grinding halt following violent protests and consequent stoppage of traffic between Kerala and Tamil Nadu due to unrest in the two States over the Mullaperiyar dam issue.

Movement of traders as well as estate owners and workers from Tamil Nadu and transportation of goods from the growing areas in Kerala to the auction and trading centres in Bodinayakannur has been totally stopped since early last week, trade sources in Kumily told Business Line .

On December 4, auction was held in Kerala by the Kerala Cardamom Processing and Marketing Cooperative in which 97 tonnes of cardamom arrived and that were almost sold out.

The auction average price was at Rs 508.36 a kg. However, the next day STCL conducted its auction at Bodinayakannur where the average price dropped to Rs 455.82 a kg due to quality issues, trade sources in Bodi told Business Line .

No supply

They said the supply from the main growing areas in Kerala has stopped completely in the absence of vehicular traffic. “There is said to be upcountry demand which is met by dealers in Bodi, the major cardamom trading centre in the country, who are selling it at Rs 50 to Rs 60 a kg above the prices which were prevailing during the week before last,” they said.

Traders in Kumily said 60 per cent of the cardamom growers (estate owners) in Kerala's Idukki district are from across the border while 80 per cent of the workers are also from Tamil Nadu. Suspension of traffic, coupled with violent protests, has compelled them to stay back, they said.

“I have been living in Kumily, deeply involved in cardamom trade for over a quarter of a century and for the first time in my life I have come across such an unfortunate and bitter experience”, said Mr P C Punnoose, General Manager, CPMC.

The suspension of cardamom auctions alone has resulted in an estimated loss of Rs 50 crore so far and an identical amount of loss could be estimated for trading activities in other spheres in the Kumily town, he said.

Decline in the movement of Sabarimala pilgrims via Cumbum, Theni, Kumily, Vandiperiyar route has also affected business activities there. However, the current situation is a blessing in disguise for the cardamom and pepper traders in Bodi, who can meet the upcountry demand by releasing some of the stocks held by them now at a comparatively good price, they said.

According to the cardamom growers and traders, a fear psychosis has been created in the minds of small and medium farmers in the five districts in Tamil Nadu, who are the beneficiaries of water from the Mullaperiyar dam for irrigation.

They said the worst affected are cardamom estate owners in Tamil Nadu and Tamil workers, who have no other alternative other than joining the masses on the other side of the border.

The weather conditions are favourable for the crop. But harvesting has been affected badly in the absence of sufficient workers, some of the growers in Kumily said.

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