'Mango production may drop by 5-10% this yr on untimely rains'

Mango production may decline by 5-10 per cent this year as unseasonal rains and hailstorms have damaged the fruit, Parliament was informed today.
"The untimely rains and hailstorms which occurred during the month of March 2015 has affected the flowering and fruit set in mango crop due to which the production of mango may decline by 5 to 10 per cent during the current year," Minister of State for Agriculture Mohanbhai Kundaria said in a reply to the Lok Sabha.
States like Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Bihar have reported damage to mango crop due to unseasonal rains and hailstorms, he added.

"States are providing compensation to the farmers who suffered losses in mango crops from the State Disaster Relief Fund and Chief Minister Relief Fund, as per the norms of the Ministry of Home Affairs wherever the losses exceeds 33 per cent," Kundaria said.
India's mango production is estimated at about 18 million tonnes in 2013-14.