Thousands of acres of fruit trees destroyed by Cyclone Mocha in Arakan State

By Admin 25 May 2023

DMG Newsroom
25 May 2023, Sittwe

Thousands of acres of fruit trees in Arakan State were damaged by Cyclone Mocha, which made landfall with destructive force on May 14, according to fruit growers.

Many acres of perennial crops such as mango, betel nut, pomelo, jackfruit and banana trees in Ponnagyun, Kyauktaw and Mrauk-U Townships were destroyed by the devastating storm.

About 85 percent of betel leaves, mango and djenkol bean trees in Taw Phyar Chaung area in Ponnagyun Township were destroyed by the cyclone storm, locals said.

“Almost all villages in Taw Phyar Chaung area grow betel leaves on a commercial scale. Most betel leaves being consumed in Arakan State are grown in Taw Phyar Chaung area,” said Ko Aung Kyaw, a member of Poe Shwee Pyin social organization.

There are thousands of perennial crops in some villages along the Lay Myo River in Mrauk-U Township, which is called an agricultural area, said local people.

About 75 percent of the rural population in Arakan State makes a living from farming and shifting cultivation.

Farmers are worried that the fruit trees growing in the gardens will be damaged by the storm, which will affect the family’s livelihood and children’s education.

“About 10 acres of perennial crops were destroyed by the storm. I will have to wait at least ten years to get this type of plantation again. We rely on this orchard for our livelihood and we don’t know how to make a living,” said Daw Nyein Nyein, a resident of Mrauk-U Township.

The junta has taken inventory of the orchards damaged by the storm, but nothing has changed so far, according to fruit growers.

Arakanese people have to buy and consume vegetables and other crops from mainland Myanmar at higher prices. The fruit trees planted in Arakan State were also destroyed by the storm, and they are now in a position where they will have to rely mainly on mainland Myanmar.

“We distribute fruits to Sittwe, Mrauk-U and Minbya and other townships in Arakan State. Since the storm destroyed all the plants, there will be a shortage of fruits in Arakan State. I think we will rely on mainland Myanmar to buy fruit,” said U Pe Win, a local farmer from Byoke Chaung Village in Mrauk-U.

The price of basic food items in post-cyclone Arakan State has doubled, and the local people have to bear the brunt of the impact of the storm as well as the high prices.