BJP MLA Sangita Patil records third straight win in Surat’s Limbayat seat despite strong anti-incumbency
- Thursday | 8th December, 2022
Farmers may also not be able to pluck the remaining fruits as their farms got inundated from rainwater. However, on Tuesday many made a beeline outside the market yard in Valsad to sell mangoes that fell off during the cyclonic storm.
Blame Tauktae if your craving for mangoes this season remains unfulfilled. The cyclone ravaged thousands of hectares of mango orchards in Saurashtra and south Gujarat, the hub of state’s mango production.
Mango farmers from Gir-Somnath, Junagadh, Amreli and Bhavnagar, home to mouth-watering Kesar mangoes, are staring at humongous losses after the devastating wind accompanied by heavy rains tore through the mango-laden trees. “The cyclone struck at the ripe harvesting time. Had it been 10 to 20 days later, farmers would have sold their crops and earned money. Much of the damage is witnessed in the old and bigger trees owing to their height,” said DK Varu, head of the Department of Fruit Science at Junagadh Agriculture University.
In south Gujarat too, a loss of 50% of fruits is estimated in the bigger trees. “Farmers are going to face a severe economic burden as this was the season of making money,” said Bharat Desai, a farmer from Killa-Pardi in Valsad district. “We have never seen such damage to our crops as well as to our trees. The winds were so strong that branches broke, and even trees got bent,” he added.
Farmers may also not be able to pluck the remaining fruits as their farms got inundated from rainwater. However, on Tuesday many made a beeline outside the market yard in Valsad to sell mangoes that fell off during the cyclonic storm.
“These (fallen) mangoes have to be disposed off or sold. Otherwise, fruit flies will start damaging the mangoes which are still there on the trees,” Desai said. Kesar mangoes which are usually sold at Rs 1,500 for 20kg were sold for Rs 250 to Rs 300 for 20kg in the market on Tuesday.
The annual turnover of mangoes in south Gujarat is estimated to be around Rs 400 to Rs 500 crore, but due to the cyclone this year it is likely to be less than 50%.
“The end consumer is also not going to pay a good price for the mangoes which are still on the trees because of the rain, and many may not even buy now. The government should think of compensating the farmers,” said Dr CK Timbadiya, senior scientist and head of Krushi Vigyan Kendra at Navsari Agriculture University.
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