Tobacco farmers should not cultivate tobacco over the limit for the next agricultural season due to rising prices of tobacco this year, said J. Suresh Babu, chairman of the tobacco board on Tuesday here at Tangutur. Speaking to newsmen, he said that penalty on excess tobacco was diminished but as the election code was under force, it could only be implemented from the next month. Tobacco had a vast market in south India and tobacco growers were enjoying highest prices of Rs 99 per kg which was a record, he said. Average tobacco was also getting Rs 77 per kg. The Tobacco Board had to procure 160 million kg of tobacco by June this year but had already purchased 120 million kg, the rest of the target to be completed soon, he said. Fertilisers to be used in tobacco cultivation was scarce, Mr Suresh said, as the raw material had to come from China, but with this country being engaged in the Olympic Games, the supply of the same had stalled, he added. The Board had already paid an advance for 2,000 tonnes of the raw material and were trying to get the same soon, he added. They were also trying to import tobacco rolling machine from Brazil, he said. But as the machine cost Rs 70,000, they were producing the same machine at Vijayawada at low prices, he said. The chairman inspected the tobacco auction centre at Tangutur and some tobacco farmers appealed to him to give an insurance scheme to tobacco peasants on the occasion. The tobacco board regional manager, Mr Venkatram Reddy, and various officials of the auction centre along with tobacco farmers participated in the programme.