MP NEWS: Burhanpur banana reached Iraq, Iran, Dubai, Bahrain, Türkiye

Bhopal. Madhya Pradesh has rapidly made its place in the global agricultural export market. 30 thousand metric tons of bananas are being exported annually from Burhanpur district of the state to Iraq, Iran, Dubai, Bahrain and Turkey. The fame of Burhanpur banana has reached far and wide. The hard work of banana producing farmers and the help of the government has given a new identity to Burhanpur. About 19,000 banana growers are growing banana crop in an area of 23,650 acres. In this, an average of 16.54 lakh metric tons is produced annually from Burhanpur itself. After the inclusion of banana in the One District One Product scheme, banana producing farmers have enthusiastically taken full advantage of the export opportunities.

Due to keen interest of farmers in agro export market, strong agri trade infrastructure and good presence of export companies, Burhanpur banana has got good domestic and international market. Mainly G-9, Basrai, Harshali, Shrimanthi varieties are being grown here. Banana production and processing is being promoted under the Prime Minister Micro Food Processing Enterprises Scheme. As a result, 30 banana chips processing units are established in Burhanpur. Some units are also manufacturing banana powder and are looking for the market.

Praveen Patil of Burhanpur is happy with the good profits. He owns 60 acres of land in Dapora village, which is 16 km from Burhanpur district headquarters. Dapora is a gram panchayat consisting of about 700 houses. He learned the art of banana farming from his father and grandfather.

Praveen says that the market price was good in the last two seasons. According to market demand, banana was sold at Rs 2,000 to Rs 2,500 per quintal. Not every season is good. Many times there is a huge difference between demand and supply.

Regarding the cost of farming, Praveen says that it is approximately Rs 140 per plant. Comes till. He says that 300 to 500 saplings are planted. If everything goes well, the production is 450 to 500 quintals. Excessive rainfall, weather and waterlogging of fields harm banana plants, which become victims of Cucumber Mosaic Virus – CMV. They say that there is no option left except to destroy the plants infected with the virus.

Praveen is the eldest in a joint family of 15 members. Two younger brothers live together. Elder son Rohal Patil is studying mechanical engineering in a private university in Indore. Younger son Shwetal Patil is studying computer science in the same university. Both of them sometimes help in farming activities during holidays.

Praveen further explains that the domestic market for Burhanpur bananas is good. Our banana goes to New Delhi and Haryana. I also keep in touch with people who export agriculture.

Ichhapur village is 19 km away from Burhanpur where there are a large number of farmers cultivating bananas. Most of the farmers do traditional farming. Rahul Chauhan, a 37-year-old farmer here, has 25 acres of land. He became familiar with the methods of banana cultivation since childhood. They live in a joint family of 17 members. He is the eldest among four brothers. His son Vishwanath Pratap Singh Chauhan studies in second class while daughter Priya is in sixth class. They have a tube well and a traditional well. He knows the economics of farming very well. Explaining in detail about profits and losses, he says that it all depends on the weather and market behavior.

Many times the market prices are good but the crop is not good. Sometimes the crop is good but prices are not available. They are also concerned about virus attack and say that the CMV virus is the only threat to a healthy banana plant. He says that if fully grown plants have CMV, we have to uproot them.

Rahul says that gone are the days when the ancestors believed that more plants would give more yield. We are planting trees in 8×5 feet space. Plant 1,200 plants per acre. Earlier 1,800 plants were planted per acre. The cost per plant comes to around Rs 150. There is a net profit of Rs 1.5 lakh in one acre. The profit of one season reaches Rs 25 lakh. This also includes the cost of farming.

Rahul further explains that the cost of farming one acre is around Rs. Comes up to 70 thousand. A mature plant gives 15 kg to 20 kg bunches. If well taken care of, the yield per bunch reaches 30 to 35 kg. He believes that there is a need to further improve the functioning of the mandi system in the interest of banana growers. Delay in the process of selling the produce affects the chances of good profits.

There are also a large number of small farmers like Rajendra Chaudhary of Shahpur village, 11 km from the district headquarters. He has four acres of land on which he plants 5000 plants. They earn an average of Rs 5 lakh. He says that the market has been very favorable for the farmers in the last two-three seasons. His son Mohit Chaudhary is pursuing MBA from a local management college, while younger son Aniket has done a diploma in fitter trade from the nearby Khaknar Government Polytechnic.

Banana production has given rise to banana chips processing units. At present there are 30 such units in Burhanpur. Yogesh Mahajan runs banana chips manufacturing unit Maruti Chips. Their annual turnover is Rs 20 to 25 lakh. He says that the easy availability and continuous supply of bananas prompted him to open a chip manufacturing unit.