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Naidu asks Piyush Goyal to free 150 chilli containers worth Rs 60 crore stuck in Colombo on moisture grounds

The Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister has asked the Union Commerce Minister to raise the issue with the buying countries, saying the hold-up will cost farmers and exporters dearly.

By Telugu Scope Political Desk

Published November 4, 2026 · 2 min read

Dried red Guntur chillies spread out to dry on a blue tarpaulin

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu has asked the Centre to rescue a shipment of over 150 chilli containers stuck at the port of Colombo. In a letter to Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal, he sought help to get the cargo, worth around Rs 60 crore, cleared and shipped. The Chief Minister’s Office made the letter public on Wednesday, 4 November.

The chilli was on its way to buyers in China, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Thailand and Singapore. It was held at Colombo on the ground that its moisture content was above the permitted limit, the CMO said.

Losses for growers and traders

In the letter, Naidu said the delay would hurt growers and exporters badly. He asked Goyal to raise it with the governments of the importing countries and to help get the containers released and sent on to their destinations.

Andhra Pradesh grows more chilli than any other State in India, and the Guntur market yard is among the biggest chilli trading centres in the country.

The CMO did not say when the containers reached Colombo, how long they have been held, or which exporters own them. The next move rests with the Union Commerce Ministry, which Naidu wants to open talks with the five buying countries.

Representative image: Guntur chillies drying in the sun. Photo: Dr. Chinchu C. / CC BY 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons