Luscious fruits likely to turn expensive, particularly premium varieties
Mysuru: If you’re a fruit lover and have a deep desire of relishing succulent mangoes, this year’s mega mango mela is the place for you. After a gap of two years, the mango mela will be back at the end of next month (May) and the exact date will be confirmed by the Department of Horticulture.
It is usually held at the peak of summer season where varieties of mangoes are put on display to the visitors and are sold in large numbers. They include the popular as well as some rare species. Through this exhibition, different types of mangoes from all over the country are brought together in one place, and trading of the fruit is encouraged.
This year, the mela will be jointly organised by Karnataka State Mango Development and Marketing Corporation Ltd (KSMD) and the Department of Horticulture (Zilla Panchayat). “We are planning to bring the best fruits under one platform and benefit farmers by providing them with direct marketing options. The pandemic forced us to scrap mango melas in 2020 and 2021,” Rudresh, Deputy Director of Horticulture, Mysuru said.
More than 15 varieties of mangoes will be kept on display and sale including Rathnagiri Alphonso, Badami, Raspuri, Sendhura, Neelam, Amrapali, Kesar, Baganapalli, Malagova, Totapuri, Dussheri, and Mallika.
The mela will be open for farmers from other districts too. “Prolonged rain last year that increased moisture in the soil is one of the reasons for the delayed flowering and also crop damage. This is the fourth straight year of mango farmers suffering crop losses. As the yield falls, farmers are now pinning hopes that the prices will shoot up,” he added.
The yield this season would only be around 30 to 40 percent of a normal year. The Karnataka State Mango Development and Marketing Corporation Ltd. estimates that the yield this year will be around 8 lakh metric tonnes, as against a normal yield in the range of 14-16 lakh metric tonnes. In Mysuru, about 6,000 tonnes of fruit is expected from the district this year.
CALL THESE NUMBERS
For more information about the mela, growers can contact the Department of Horticulture on Ph: 0821-2977572, 2422255 or Mob: 9980007556. They can register for the mela by May 5 and a meeting will be held on May 7 with the growers to decide on the date, venue and duration of the mango mela.
This post was published on April 23, 2022 6:41 pm