Shivamogga: Former minister and senior BJP MLA from Thirthahalli Araga Jnanendra Thursday expressed serious concern over the state notification banning gutka, warning that it had triggered a sharp market decline and caused immense financial distress to arecanut growers across Karnataka.In a social media post, he said Karnataka contributes a major share of the country’s total arecanut production and emphasised that the state govt has a responsibility to protect local farmers. He said the gutka ban had caused severe market disruptions, directly affecting growers in the state where the crop is cultivated.Jnanendra, a leader of the All India Arecanut Growers’ Association, announced that a multi-party delegation of MLAs representing arecanut-growing constituencies would meet chief minister DK Shivakumar to discuss the issue.He noted that arecanut cultivation has expanded to more than 12 districts, with thousands of farmers converting paddy land into plantations. As these perennial crops cannot simply be uprooted or replaced, he urged the state leadership to step in immediately and safeguard farmers’ livelihoods.
