Thanks to its soil and weather, Satkhira's mangoes ripen earlier than those in other parts of the country, so farmers in the region get good prices. To keep quality up and market mangoes safely this season, the district's mango picking and marketing has been launched in line with the timetable set by the administration.

Satkhira Deputy Commissioner Mostak Ahmed opened the harvest by picking mangoes at the orchard of grower Billal Hossain in Fingri union of Sadar upazila at 11am on 5 May. The event was organised by the district administration and the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE).

Sadar upazila agriculture officer Monir Hossain and others were present.

Organisers said Satkhira's mangoes are valued at home and abroad, so the district administration has set fixed dates for picking them. Under the picking and marketing calendar, local varieties including Gobindabhog, Gopalbhog, Bombai, Gopalkhas and Boishakhi can be picked from 5 May, Himsagar from 20 May, Langra from 27 May and Amrapali from 5 June.

Because the district has only one mango market, growers and traders face many problems from lack of space. Farmers are demanding more markets instead of relying on the single sales centre at Sultanpur Borobazar.

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