DEOGARH:The Western Odisha district of Deogarh is counted among the few areas in the State where fruits are grown in large scale. Farmers here, though, earn very little profit from the crops.
This industrially backward district is famous for cultivation of fruits like watermelon, Litchi, orange and mango despite lack of irrigation facilities. In absence of food processing industries and storage facilities, the growers are left at the mercy of the traders and middlemen. Although Collector Guha Punam Tapas Kumar had announced to develop food processing industries in the district in view of massive fruit cultivation, not much headway has yet been made.
Watermelon crops dot the landscape of Barkote, Remal and Tileibani in the district. It is concentrated in Barkote where the juicy fruit has been cultivated in 700 acres of land this year and the harvest has already been started.
With virtually non-existent local demand, the growers have no way out but to sell watermelons to the traders who come from outside the district. While it is sold at Rs 10 per kg in the open market, traders procure it from the farmers at Rs 4 to Rs 5 per kg.
Dilip Kumar Naik of Khajurikhamn village in Barkote block said he has grown watermelons in 45 acres.
Since the fruit is perishable and there is no cold storage, farmers are forced to sell the produce to traders at whatever price they offer. Naik said if the sale is regulated by the administration and there are cold storage facilities in the district, the farmers can benefit a lot.
Deputy Director of Horticulture, Deogarh, Girija Bhusan Satpathy admitted to the problem in marketing fruits grown in the district but said it is the responsibility of the Regulated Market Committee to ensure fair price to the growers.
However, Deogarh Sub-Collector and Chairman of RMC, Bhakta Charan Pradhan said there is no system to provide marketing platform to fruit growers and the assistance is confined to paddy only.