SURAT, June 17: Much to the disappointment of farmers and consumers the Valsad Alphonso mango this year was a mere 25 to 30 per cent of the estimated produce. And with little produce and no profit, farmers, who traditionally were involved in mango farming, are now looking towards other avenues in agriculture.Five years ago, the Alphonso mango brought in a profit of about Rs 20 crore during the season. However, with just a quarter of the mangoes making their way to the market, mango orchard owners have no option but to swallow a bitter pill.
On one hand it is the low produce that is keeping them awake at night and on the other very few consumers. Mango prices are selling at Rs 30 per kg and there are no signs of decrease.
R R Mishra, a mango dealer of the Valsad market yard told Express Newsline that the year was one of the most disappointing ones with very little produce and few consumers. He said it would be a fortnight until mangoes remained in the market, after which the season would come to an end.And it is not only Valsad, which has bore the brunt. Gadad, Gandevi, Vapi, Umargam, Bhilad, Dharampur and Vansda have all registered a slump in mango production this year.
While some attribute the low production to the rapid industrialisation of the Valsad-Vapi-Dharampur belt, which they allege has adversely affected the production, others opine that the unseasonal winds early this year destroyed the crop, which was at it budding stage.
However, other varieties of mango including Ratnagiri, Devgarh,Malwada and Rajpur have also registered close to 50 per cent reduction in the production. The Totapuri variety of Andhra Pradesh has also shown a fall by 30 per cent.
Arvindbhai Desai, a partner of Satishbhai Nayak and Sons group dealing in mangoes, said this was the first time in 25 years that the produce of mangoes had been so low. Jayantibhai Patel, another leading trader of mangoes in the Valsad market, said that while the market yard was flooded with orders by dealers even from outside the state, this year many had opted for other varieties considering Alphonso's high price (upto Rs 500 for 20 kgs).
Kailashnath Pande, another trader in the market pointed out the shortage of cold storages, which he said were a must in South Gujarat, as the region had maximum number of orchards.
He suggested that with the mango production falling consecutively for five years, the government should look into the matter and treat the matter urgently. At this rate, in a few years time there be no variety of this Alphonso mango variety to choose from, he said.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
