India has 6 million Tobacco farmers. In Andhra Pradesh Tobacco Crop is Cultivated on two hundred thousand hectares and different varieties of Tobacco are grown which are used for manufacturing Cigarettes, Beedies, hand rolled Cigars and Tobacco Chewing powder. They are cultivating the crop for the past 4 generations. So much so that most of these farmers are not aware of any other cropping practices. Tobacco is a rainfed, sturdy and short term crop and is not affected by pest and diseases.
Limited investment gives better returns than any other rainfed crop.
There are over 2 million agricultural labour dlepedent on Tobacco Cultivation in Andhra Pradesh. These labourer belong to social and economically weaker sections of the Indian Society. Their wages are well above the minimum wage fixed by Government of India. Any change in the cropping pattern should be able to provide labour with equality remunerative labour wages. This leaf is available only in India and has no alternative uses.