PATNA: Bihar is expecting a bumper litchi crop this year — 20 to 25% higher compared to last year, according to agriculture department sources.
While this has cheered farmers, they are sure that there are no processing facilities for litchis in the state, which would have enabled them to reap better profits from the crop.
Government estimates put the likely litchi production this year between 2.75 and 3 lakh tonne against last year’s 2.25 lakh tonne. An agriculture department official said that Bihar produces about 60% of the country’s litchi output.
Favourable climate during the past few months helped in higher litchi production. According to reports reaching the state capital from Muzaffarpur, which is famous for litchis, the flowering in litchi trees was good this year. Besides, good rain in March-end and April helped in proper growth of litchis and their ripening.
However, farmers say it remains to be seen if higher production would be a bonanza or bane for them. They point out that litchis are a perishable item and cannot be stocked in cold storages. With a shelf life of barely two-three days, they need to be sent to markets at the earliest after plucking. Transport bottlenecks could mar their chances of deriving good profits from the crop. Besides, a glut in the market due to bumper production could lead to a sharp fall in prices, making the nature’s bounty a curse for them.
Farmers are sore that despite repeated announcements over the years, litchi-processing units have not come up in the state. This has robbed the farmers of a chance to get higher prices for their produce.
Officials said Shahi litchis, the best quality of this luscious fruit, are also exported to other parts of the country and abroad, but the quantity is very low compared to the production.