TIRUCHY: Unseasonal rains in the districts of Salem, Krishnagiri and Dharmapuri have brought down mango supply in Tiruchy by nearly 25% as compared to last year, said traders at Gandhi Market. The selling price, however, fairly remains the same, they added.
Mentioning unseasonal rains as having affected production in the aforementioned districts, Sridhar, a trader who imports mangoes from those areas, said, "Last year, we received a higher supply of mangoes and the price was Rs 40-Rs 45 a kg. This year despite lesser stock the price remains the same.
Mango sales for summer have not picked up yet; we look forward to May for possible demand in the district." Kamala Kannan MK of the fruit traders’ welfare association in Gandhi Market said, "We receive raw mangoes and we ripen them artificially.
On the one hand, if we don't do it the mangoes will go to waste while on the other hand, unsold ripe fruits will leave us with losses." Kajudeen V, also from the market, said, "In spite of low stock, the sales are not picking up. The quality of mangoes, too, is not the same."
Traders said mango varieties like Imam Pasand, Banganapalli, Senthuram, Kallamani, and Alphonso have a stable demand among consumers. Karthikeyan K, a resident, said, "There usually would be large quantities of mangoes dumped by the roadside by small-scale vendors this time of the year but no such scene prevails.”