A banana-grower from Tura waits for customers at Darrangiri market. A file picture

July 28: It remains eastern India?s largest banana market, but growers and traders in Darrangiri are not exactly going bananas over recent volumes of trade.

Located along National Highway 37 in this Lower Assam district, the market?s growth has been stunted by infrastructure bottlenecks.

Bananas grown in Darrangiri are sold in Bihar, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Orissa and Jharkhand.

Within the state, it supplies bananas to Guwahati, Jorhat, Dibrugarh and Nagaon districts. A small amount also goes to Bangladesh through the Garo hills, on the Indo-Bangladesh border.

Nearly 1,500-1,800 trucks of banana go out every week to Meghalaya, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.

In monetary terms, each truckload is worth between Rs 20,000 and Rs 30,000, depending on the season and demand.

However, traders from outside the state are finding it difficult to do business in Darrangiri because the place still does not have a proper hotel.

The nearest railway station is about 11 km from the market.

Moreover, the market lacks a government-owned financial institution in the vicinity for bulk transactions.

A police outpost to maintain security during peak trading hours has remained a mere proposal.

Though marketing of banana continues round the year, barring Sundays and Tuesdays, the peak period begins in September ? just before Viswakarma Puja ? and continues till Chhat Puja in November.

Except for a section of traders from Assam, the majority of those involved in the trade are from outside the state, especially the Garo hills of Meghalaya.

Anil Hajong, a local trader, said villagers in Assam needed to grow and sell their produce on their own. ?The only positive sign is that educated youths have started taking interest in the trade and are opting for banana farming as a means of livelihood.?

The Darrangiri Anchalik Development Samiti, an NGO, has been trying to keep the market going despite the lack of government support.