A half-hour storm has caused heavy damage to mangoes in Chapainawabganj, especially in Gomostapur upazila, where mature mangoes have fallen. They would have reached the market in a few days; instead they are selling for just Tk 3.5 a kg, leaving growers worried.

A visit to the Jatahara, Rohanpur and Jamtala areas of Gomostapur upazila on Saturday (17 May) afternoon found growers bringing mangoes in sacks on vans and other vehicles, while traders sitting by the road bought them at Tk 3.5 a kg. The mangoes are being sent to various parts of the district.

Gomostapur grower Azim Ali said: "There was a heavy storm with rain in this upazila last night, and Gopalbhog, Ashwina, Khirsapat and others fell. But the mango market has not opened in Chapainawabganj yet, so I cannot sell them there. I have to sell them locally at Tk 3.5 a kg. In a few days these mangoes would have sold at Tk 100-150 a kg."

Rafiqul Islam, another grower from the area, said: "No one wants to buy mangoes that fell in the storm, so local traders are buying them at only Tk 3.5 a kg and sending them to various parts of the country. We suffered heavy losses in yesterday's storm."

Abdul Alim, a grower in the Jatahara area, said: "I would have picked and sold these mangoes in a week. But more than half fell in yesterday's storm. Mangoes that would have sold at Tk 150 a kg are now selling at Tk 3.5 a kg because they fell."

Dr Md Yasin Ali, deputy director of the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) in Chapainawabganj, said: "Some mangoes were damaged in the night's storm and rain, with relatively greater damage in Gomostapur. These mangoes are of little use, so they sell cheaply."

According to the DAE, Chapainawabganj currently has 37,604 hectares of seasonal mango orchards, with a production target of 3 lakh 86 thousand tonnes this year.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.