Agriculture Minister Dr Abdus Shahid has said mango yields in Rajshahi are lower this year, so prices will rise, and that people must therefore stay alert to syndicate traders. Care must be taken that the gap between mango demand and supply does not grow too wide, he said.

He was speaking at midday on Friday (17 May) while visiting mango orchards and holding a discussion with growers in Karampur village of Godagari, Rajshahi.

The minister said Russia, Belarus, China, Japan and India had expressed interest in taking mangoes, and that the government is trying to export more.

He said 250-300 farmers had been helped to export mangoes, and that mango grading sheds and treatment plants are being set up in Rajshahi and Chapainawabganj for export.

Earlier, the minister visited farmer Ratul's farm in Sonadighi village, where he saw soilless seedling production, e-farming, vermicompost, a homestead garden and crop fields.

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