There was a time when people had to wait for mangoes from the north to eat good varieties. But for the past eight to ten years, that wait had been shrinking for people in Kalapara, in the southern district of Patuakhali, as many local farmers turned to mango growing and began meeting local demand. Cyclone Remal has now wrecked everything. Branches broke and large quantities of mangoes fell, leaving growers facing losses.

Visits to several orchards in the upazila showed countless broken branches lying on the ground. Some trees were uprooted. Beneath some trees lay all or part of their unripe mangoes.

Jahangir Musulli lives in Latachapli union of the upazila. On six acres, he has about 700 trees of around 35 mango varieties, including Amrapali, BARI-4, Kiujhai, Gorumoti, Banana, Fazli, Ashwina and Gopalbhog. Cyclone Remal has ruined him.

"The cyclone damaged more than 100 maunds of my mangoes, with a market value of Tk 5 to 6 lakh. Selling had just begun now and would have gone on until July. A few of the damaged mangoes can be eaten, but most will have to be thrown away," Jahangir Musulli said. He added that every time a natural disaster has struck the coast, his orchard has suffered.

A local man, Abul Hossain Raju, said Kalapara upazila has more than 200 mango growers, large and small, and all of them have suffered from the cyclone. Several big orchard owners in the Kuakata area, including Jahangir Musulli, Esahak Munshi and Rubel Musulli, were hit hardest. People used to come just to see their orchards, he said.

Upazila agriculture officer Arafat Hossain said the cyclone damaged vegetables on 180 hectares, jute on 58 hectares, papaya on 25 hectares, banana on 50 hectares, sesame on 10 hectares, mango on 150 hectares, Aus seedbeds on 106 hectares and Aus paddy on 178 hectares in the upazila. The total loss to agriculture is Tk 8 crore. Growers will be helped once the damage has been assessed, he said.

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