LOWER DIR: The roadside stalls of the famous ‘red blood orange’ of Rabat in Lower Dir present an attractive sight for tourists and passengers bound for Kumrat or Peshawar as the sale of the fruit has begun.

Dozens of such stalls and kiosks of the Rabat ‘malta’ (orange) that is popular in Pakistan for its colour, taste and juice, can be seen on both sides of the main road as one enters Rabat town.

Farmanullah, a roadside vendor, while dealing with a customer from Mardan, told Dawn that people preferred to buy the Rabat orange as compared to other varieties of the fruit due to its taste and juicy nature.

“The sale of Rabat orange begins in the start of December and continues till May,” he said, adding that it was being sold at Rs1,100 per bag containing 100 oranges.

The vendor said that the price of Rabat ‘red blood orange’ reached Rs3,500 per 100 oranges in April and May. He said that majority of the customers sent it to their relatives and friends as a gift.

Hidayatullah, another orange dealer in Rabat, said that some of the growers had started plucking the fruit while some would wait till March and April.

He said that oranges of Palai Malakand, Timergara, Kaka Sahib and Khanpur could not compete with the Rabat orange.

He said that besides the down districts, the fruit was also supplied to Dubai, Saudi Arabia and other countries in the winter season.

Shakir alias Ameer Sahib, another dealer, said that prolonged drought-like situation and soil erosion on the bank of the Panjkora River badly affected yield of orange in Rabat, Khall and Munjai in the current year.

He said that quality, taste and colour of Rabat orange improved when it was left in trees till March or April.

Habibul Haq, an agriculture officer, told Dawn that the orange orchards in Lower Dir were spread over 1,200 acres in various areas that produced about 3,200 tonnes of oranges annually.

He said that the ‘red blood orange’ of Rabat was the most popular variety.

The orange growers complained that neither the government nor the agriculture department ever helped them. They said that produce of their orchards could be improved if the government supported them.

They said that government should take practical steps to rehabilitate the washed away orchards in the area.

Published in Dawn, December 15th, 2021