Pineapple growers of Dungmin Gewog in Pema Gatshel are unable to make much profit from the sale of the fruit this season. This is because transporting the fruit to the market in Monggar has become a hassle after the Kuri-Gongri Bridge which is a shorter route that connects the gewog with their buyer, collapsed in June this year. The pineapple growers are worried they might not be able to make any profit during the winter harvest too if the bridge reconstruction works do not start soon.
The people of Bangyul-Migkuri Chiwog have been growing pineapple as their main cash crop for a few years now.
They could easily sell the harvest to the Bhutan Agro Industry at Lingmithang in Monggar using the Kuri-Gongri bridge which collapsed more than two months ago.
The bridge collapsed during the peak harvest season of the fruit. As a result, they had to take a longer route to transport the fruit to Monggar. This, they say, incurred additional transportation costs which had to be met from the income gained from selling the fruit. They added this results in reduced profits.
“We have to transport our produce via Trashigang and sometimes via Kheng in Monggar. So, when we calculate the expenditure, it is a lot,” said Sangay Norbu, a pineapple grower.
“We have even lost our harvest to wild animals like deer, sly fox, and rats. When we had the bridge, we used to take it to the factory whenever we could. Now, we have to pay almost double the usual charge for transportation,” said Pema Chezom, also a pineapple grower.
According to the farmers, taking the longer route also delays transportation and the fruit gets damaged.
The farmers here harvest the fruit twice a year. They are hopeful of making up for the losses during the winter harvest which is in November.
“I am worried, my members will suffer again if it remains like today. We would be grateful if the reconstruction of the bridge starts soon and is completed before the pineapple transportation season begins,” said Dampay, the chairman of Durungri Pineapple Group.
However, their hopes of recovering the losses incurred this summer are not likely to materialise as the bridge reconstruction works may not be completed as expected.
According to the Department of Surface Transport’s regional office in Lingmithang, the reconstruction of the bridge over the Gongri River will take at least three months to complete as the bridge parts have to be imported.
The works to build a modular steel bridge with more load-carrying capacity have been awarded to a contractor.
The bailey bridge over the Gongri River collapsed twice this year. The bailey bridge first collapsed in May and was reconstructed. However, it collapsed again in June.
Thinley Dorji, Pema Gatshel
Edited by Phub Gyem
