Although there has been a bumper pumpkin harvest, farmers have been unable to sell all their produce as they had no proper means to preserve their crops.
Farmers said that harvests were so massive this season that traders were reluctant to pay Rs.15 per kilogram. They added that they sell their produce on the road at a low rate of Rs.50 per pumpkin.
They said that only a small proportion of pumpkin could be sold while most of the harvest went to waste.
Farmers said that authorities could set up factories to manufacture flour, jam, chutney or any other food or sweet with pumpkin. Farmers said that during the previous season, too, they had a bumper harvest, and that they faced the same situation back then as well.