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Rajshahi Mango Hub

Rampant use of chemicals

ANWAR Ali, Rajshahi
Despite frequent drives by mobile courts, a large number of orchard owners and traders in Rajshahi and Chapainawabganj continue using toxic chemicals to grow and ripen mangoes.
Orchard owners use much higher doses of toxic pesticides than the permissible level to grow the fruit in attractive sizes and skins, experts and witnesses have said.
From flowering to harvesting, orchard owners use four to five types of chemicals, including insecticides, growth hormone and ripening hormone.
As the delicious fruit is comparatively pricier this year due to low output, the tendency of using chemicals to protect the fruit is veiy high.
Some varieties of mangoes are normally ripened early in theseasonthan others, said Dr M Alim Uddin, chief scientific officer at the Fruit Research Centre of Rajshahi.
Among the varieties, Gopalbhog, Loukhna and Rani Pasand hit the market earlier, followed by Khirsapat, Himsagar, Langra and the king of mangoes, Fazli, one after the other, he added.
"Traders use toxic chemicals when they pluck some varieties of mangoes in advance. So buyers need to be careful about this," he mentioned.
Nazrul Islam, a trader at Banessor, said, "Some of us use calcium carbide to ripen mangoes like Khiisapat, Himsagor, Langraand Fazli within 24 hours."
"Some even apply formalin on Gopalbhog now as it is high time for ripening it," he mentioned, adding that the mango traders collect the chemicals from local shops selling fertilisers and seeds.
Mobile courts launched drives in local markets at least thrice in the last three days, but found nothing wrong.
But on Tuesday afternoon, a mobile court led by Executive Magistrate Sheikh Hafizur Rahman raided at least 12 mango hoarders' shops at Banessor and fined two mango traders Tk 75,000 for treating mangoes with calcium carbide and formalin. The court damaged mangoes worth Tk 1.50 lakh during
the drive.
It also fined a seed shop owner Tk 15,000 forstoringdate-expired seeds and selling chemicals in loose bottles.
"We suggest that growers use pesticides two to three times after the flowering and when the mangoes are of the sizes of grams and marbles. Growers are allowed to use pesticides two or three times more in cases of pest attacks," mentioned Dr Alim.
Spraying of chemicals on mangoes has been a common scene at the mango orchards of Godagari and Bagha upazilas of Rajshahi and also at the large market at Banessor, Puthia, in the last two weeks.
Growers said they use toxic pesticides, fungicides and vitamins like sevin powder, noin, tilt and mancojeb almost daily for ensuring attractive size, colour and skin of mangoes. At times, the total spray count of chemicals on mango plants reaches around 40 times.
Maty growers in Godagari and Bagha upazilas this year mixed shampoo with pesticides and sprayed the mixture on mango trees for protecting the fruits from getting black spots which usually develop foil owing rain fa 11.
"The growers will not spray chemicals on one or two trees for their own consumption. They hardly care about publichealth,'’ said Mohammad Rassel, ayouth ofBagha.
Some people who sprayed chemicals on trees without taking any protective measures complained of irritation and