Drought may hit mango arrivals

Mango farmers in the state are a worried lot. In just 6-8 months, five lakh mango trees have died in the famous Nuziveed belt in Krishna district. A combination of drought and heat have ensured this state of affairs, which is expected to adversely hit mango arrivals.

However, the meagre export market of the size of 200-300 tonnes is likely to be unaffected as there are only about five exporters in the field. Mangoes are exported to the Gulf countries, Hong Kong, Bangladesh, Nepal and Singapore

Hardly, 25 per cent of normal mango crop of 6.5 lakh tonnes is expected to hit the market this season, according to M Venkateswarlu, assistant director, Horticulture Department.

As the green mango (unripened) started arriving into the market, prices are shooting up. The price of 'Banginapalli', the prince and the most popular among mango varieties, is certain to cross Rs 20,000 per tonne as against last year's rate of Rs 10,000, according to K Radhakrishna, secretary of the Mango Merchants' Association.

The price of 'Thotapuri', another popular variety and used in mango pulp making, is likely to shoot up to Rs 12,000 per tonne as against last year's price of Rs 1,000-1,500 per tonne. 'Suvarnarekha' another variety was sold at Rs 5,000 per tonne last year, but this year its rate may touch Rs. 15,000 this season.

"The drought and the unprecedented heat waves experienced during April-May last year are the main culprits. Mango gardens are still recovering. In a normal season only about five trucks transported dead branches every day. Now nearly 70 trucks laden with cut off mango trees are seen going to timber and firewood markets," according to D Seetharama Rao, a mango garden owner

The Rs 100 crore Vijayawada Mango Market, which is the biggest in Asia, may this time witness a slide in mango arrivals, according to Radhakrishna.

Venkateswarlu said, "Mangoes are being grown in 65,000 hectares in the district. Banginapalli occupies 50 per cent of the area. Fifty per cent of the trees in the district were very old and 25 per cent of the garden owners are absentee-landlords. Untimely rains because of the December cyclone have also caused damage to the mango trees by delaying the growth of new leaves and flowering. And farmers do not adopt modern methods of garden rearing to set right the defects in the plant growth."

He said, "The Horticulture Department, to help farmers, has introduced high-density plantations with 7.5/7.5 metres spacing. The other measures the department has taken were pruning of unproductive and dead branches to improve sanitation and production, rejuvenation of old trees through top working methods to expose trees to sunlight and free air, continuous training for farmers in pruning, integrated pest and nutrient management, post harvest management, fruit handling, and encouraging them to adopt micro-irrigation and organic cultivation."

The Krishna District Agri Export Zone was formed last year, he said. Under the programme, some farmers were selected and trained in pruning, harvesting, packing with latest equipment and grading.

They were given 50 per cent subsidy. Subsidised plastic crates were also supplied to farmers for transportation.

Radhakrishna said, "The season will pick up heat by the end of this week and the season will end during May 10-20. Suvarnarekha, main mango variety in Vizianagaram district, is facing bleak prospects. This will make the Calcutta merchants also to rush to the city. Reports have come that mango crop in Karnataka is also not good."

"These factors will push mango prices towards the sky. In a normal season, 6,500 trucks, each laden with 10 tonnes of fruit, were engaged in transportation. This year, the number of trucks may go down, but as the rates race up, farmers won't be complaining," Radhakrishna added.