The support price has been approved by the Union Ministry of Agriculture as part of a 50:50 cost-sharing mechanism between the Union government and the state government.
Published Jul 23, 2025 | 3:06 PM ⚊ Updated Jul 23, 2025 | 3:06 PM
Totapuri mangoes (iStock).
Synopsis: The Union government announced a support price of ₹1,490.73 per quintal for Totapuri mangoes under the Market Intervention Scheme for the 2025–26 marketing season. The scheme is expected to greatly benefit farmers in Chittoor, Tirupati, and Annamayya districts of Andhra Pradsh.
Strengthening the hands of the Andhra Pradesh government, the Union government announced a support price of ₹1,490.73 per quintal for Totapuri mangoes under the Price Deficiency Payment (PDP) scheme of the Market Intervention Scheme (MIS) for the 2025–26 marketing season.
The support price has been approved by the Union Ministry of Agriculture as part of a 50:50 cost-sharing mechanism between the Union government and the state government. The PDP scheme sets a Market Intervention Price (MIP) of ₹1,490.73 per quintal, or ₹14.91 per kg.
If farmers sell their produce below this price, they will be compensated up to ₹372.68 per quintal (₹3.73 per kg). The subsidy will be directly credited to farmers’ bank accounts through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT).
This is the first time such an initiative has been implemented for mangoes and will cover 1.62 lakh metric tonnes. The scheme is expected to greatly benefit farmers in Chittoor, Tirupati, and Annamayya districts, where a bumper harvest has triggered a steep fall in prices of the Totapuri variety, primarily used in pulp processing.
The scheme will remain in force for 30 days and requires farmers to sell their produce through designated Agricultural Produce Market Committees (APMCs), mango processing units, or authorised collection ramps. Proper documentation and verification by district collectors are mandatory to avail the benefits.
Union Minister of State for Rural Development and Communications, Dr Chandra Sekhar Pemmasani, welcomed the announcement, calling it a “lifeline” for Andhra’s mango growers. “This move will protect farmers from price crashes, ensure fair returns, and bolster rural livelihoods,” he said in a post on social media platform X.
Big relief for Andhra’s Totapuri mango farmers! 🍋
Thanking Hon’ble PM Shri @narendramodi Ji & Agri Minister Shri @ChouhanShivraj Ji for approving Price Deficiency Payment (PDP) under MIS for 2025–26.
🔹 1.62L MT coverage
🔹 MIP: ₹1,490.73/quintal
🔹 50:50 Centre–State sharing… pic.twitter.com/yVV1Re0p9l— Dr. Chandra Sekhar Pemmasani (@PemmasaniOnX) July 22, 2025
Andhra Pradesh Agriculture Minister K Atchannaidu echoed these sentiments, stating that the collaborative efforts of the Union government and the state have yielded tangible benefits for mango farmers.
He said that the ₹4-per-kg subsidy (split between the Union government and state) guarantees a minimum procurement price of ₹12 per kg, with pulp factories contributing ₹8 per kg. “Such comprehensive support for mango farmers is unmatched in any other country,” he said.
According to official sources, Andhra Pradesh produces mangoes on approximately 3.98 lakh hectares, with a yield of around 49.85 lakh metric tonnes annually. The Totapuri variety plays a vital role in the state’s horticultural economy.
The mango industry in Andhra Pradesh is valued between ₹2,500 crore and ₹6,000 crore. This includes fresh mango sales worth ₹1,200–₹4,800 crore in domestic markets, exports of 2–3 lakh tonnes worth approximately ₹700 crore, and mango pulp products valued between ₹500 and ₹1,000 crore.
However, the 2025 season posed severe challenges for Totapuri farmers. A record harvest, early harvesting practices, and reduced demand from pulp factories led to a supply glut. Pulp factories in Chittoor and Tirupati offered only ₹5,000–₹6,000 per tonne (₹5–₹6 per kg), well below the state’s mandated minimum procurement price of ₹12 per kg.
Global trade disruptions, including the ongoing Russia–Ukraine conflict and high export duties, resulted in surplus pulp inventories, further depressing prices. Additionally, low-priced Totapuri imports from Karnataka — sold at ₹3–₹5 per kg without state subsidy — intensified the crisis, undermining local markets.
In response, the Andhra Pradesh government banned imports of the variety from neighbouring states, a move that led to friction with Karnataka but helped stabilise local prices.
Farmers bore the brunt of the crisis. Many were unable to recover input costs, with mangoes left to rot in orchards and long queues forming at pulp factories for tokens to sell produce at government-notified prices.
The mounting crisis led Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu to appeal to Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan for immediate central support to rescue over 68,000 mango farmers from financial collapse.
Even before the Union government’s intervention, the Andhra Pradesh government had taken proactive steps. In June 2025, it sanctioned ₹168 crore to ensure a minimum procurement price of ₹12 per kg — ₹8 from pulp processors and ₹4 subsidised by the state.
In July, this subsidy was further increased to ₹260 crore to cover procurement of up to 6.5 lakh metric tonnes of Totapuri mangoes.
(Edited by Muhammed Fazil.)
