With barely 20 per cent of the mango crop reaching the market in Kurnool city, that too in May after a delay of two months, the prices have soared beyond the reach of the common man.
Banginapalli mangoes are sold at an exorbitant price of Rs. 500 a dozen and between Rs. 150 and Rs. 200 a kg in the retail market. The price is for ordinary mangoes that come to retail market, after businessmen and brokers of Mumbai, Delhi and other cities pick up the best quality and size and purchase them directly from the horticulturists.
Only 20 per cent of the mangoes is available for local consumption compared to the previous years and such a situation recurred almost after three decades, Kurnool City Wholesale Fruit Merchants Association president S. Bashu Mian told The Hindu on Tuesday. The mango price is double the previous year, he said.
The crop yield fell to 25 per cent this year, owing to severe drought, depletion of groundwater and drying up of borewells, said Murali, a mango orchard owner of Konganapadu in Veldurthi mandal. However, there was no damage to the crop in the district due to gales and rainfall.
The Banginapalli mango variety, famous across the world, is the only one available this year, said association secretary S. Ramaswamy. During normal conditions, several varieties such as Dil Pasand, Reddy Pasand, Nawab Pasand, Amrutham, Neelam and Totapuri flood the market, giving a choice to the customers.
Welcoming Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu’s assurance to develop the district as a horticulture hub, Mr. Bashu Mian and Mr. Ramaswamy urged the Government to establish a full-fledged fruit market on a 20-acre stretch on the outskirts of the city with godowns, cold storage and fruit processing facilities to provide avenues for import and export of the fruit.
Anantapur, Madanapalli and Rayachoti have full-fledged fruit markets. As Kurnool did not have a fruit market or godowns, nearly 20 wholesale mango merchants in Gadiyaram Hospital street in the city had to get the stocks unloaded on the road in front of their shops.
