Watermelons from Khulna are going to different parts of the country, and demand is strong. The crop has done comparatively well in the Khulna region this year, so traders are busy supplying watermelons to districts across the country.

According to the Khulna office of the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE), watermelon is grown most in Dacope, Dumuria, Rupsa and Batiaghata upazilas. This year it was grown on 1,850 hectares.

Watermelon farmers in various parts of Khulna said the crop did well this year because there was little rain early on. But sudden rain some days ago brought cold weather and caused some difficulty, and prices were lower because of the rain in between. They said there is less of a syndicate in the watermelon trade than last year, and many wholesalers are buying directly.

The varieties grown most include Pakiza, Big Pakiza, Big Family, Big Panja, Asian 2, Sakura, Sweet Dragon, Jambu Jaguar, World Queen, Astha, Asia Super and Banglalink.

It takes 65-70 days after planting to get ripe fruit. The seeds inside a ripe watermelon are darker black.

Akram Mia, a watermelon farmer in Dacope, said yields were higher this year because the winter was mild. With less heat and rain, the fruit also tastes better than in previous years.

Hillol, a watermelon farmer in Batiaghata, said: "Watermelons from our area are good, and traders look for the fruit from our fields. But growing watermelons in the burning sun is not bringing much profit."

Haridas Pal, a farmer in Dumuria, said the crop did well because of the low rainfall, but a shortage of water made irrigation difficult. This year the watermelons from each bigha are selling for between Tk 1 lakh and Tk 1.5 lakh.

Transport operators in Khulna's Kadamtala area said Khulna's watermelons are going to Dhaka, Chattogram, Ukhia, Feni, Munshiganj, Saidpur and other areas, with most going to Dhaka and Chattogram. Traders load the fruit through the night, and truck drivers set off for their destinations before dawn.

Azad, director of Ibrahim Transport, said: "We are busy supplying watermelons. Every day we have to load and send at least 5-7 trucks to different areas. Loading and unloading goes on until late at night, and we spend this season very busy."

Transport trader Shafiqul Islam said truck owners are kept busy during the watermelon season, as watermelons go from Khulna to many areas. "We spend day and night talking to traders," he said.

Md Rafiqul Islam, additional [officer] of the Khulna district DAE, said yields were good because of low rainfall this year. But farmers were in some difficulty when rain some days ago brought cold weather, and because of the rain, growers also got lower prices per bigha from traders.

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