Mango growers of Mayurbhanj are incurring heavy loss. While mangoes are priced high in the local market, growers are forced to sell their produce to retail traders at half the price that they got last year.
Officials of Horticulture wing said mango varieties like Amrapali, Totapuri and Deshari are cultivated in around 12,500 hectares (ha) of land in 26 blocks of the district. The Deshari variety grown here is in much demand in New Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal.
In fact, New Delhi, Maharastra, West Bengal, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu consume 30 per cent of mangoes cultivated from Mayurbhanj every year. But the farmers are not getting adequate remuneration for their produce despite the heavy demand.
The district has this year produced five tonnes of mangoes per ha against the average production of six to seven tonnes per ha. While the bad weather condition played truant leading to less production, exploitation by traders has further added to their problems.
A farmer Diganta Hembram said hailstorm and untimely rains damaged mango crop this year. As a result, mango production has reduced by 10 per cent and even the quality of fruits has come down.
Although farmers had expected some profit of the remaining crop, but due to lack of proper market linkage farmers are being exploited by middlemen who purchase the crop at a low price and sell the same at a higher rate in open market. The district has so far produced 47,000 MT mangoes.
At present, varieties like Amrapali, Dasehari, Totapuri and Gopalbhug are priced between Rs 7,000 and Rs 12,000 per tonne as against Rs 24,000 last year. Besides, middlemen from West Bengal, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh have taken mango trees on lease from the tribals at throwaway prices.
"Tribals this time have been paid Rs 500 to Rs 1000 per tree for a season of production. Earlier they use to earn Rs 3,000 to Rs 5,000 from one mango tree," said Hembram.
Deputy Director of Horticulture Dharanidhar Patra said the department had selected a few cultivators and supported them to market their produced in the metros including Delhi.
"We have also arranged interactions for them with big traders from whom they can gain experience of good packaging and knowledge on quality check. Besides, they can also come in contact with wholesalers who would be supplied mangos directly from Baripada,” he added.
The sour facts
■ The farmers are not getting adequate remuneration for their produce despite the heavy demand across India
■ Due to lack of proper market linkage farmers are being exploited by middlemen who purchase the crop at a low price and sell the same at a higher rate in open market