Seasonal Berhampur mango market back in trade

With the season of king of fruits setting in, Berhampur, the largest mango market in Odisha, is flooded with the juicy fruit. Almost every variety of the mangoes has arrived in the market that is doing a daily business of Rs1 lakh to Rs 1.5 lakh.

The favourite varieties of the customers are Sundari, Baiganapalli, Cherukurasam or Akhurasa and Panukul. While a kilogram of Akhurasa mangoes costs Rs 45 in wholesale rate, Sundari is priced between Rs 28 and Rs 35, Baiganapalli Rs 30  and Rs 40 while the Kalambi variety comes for around Rs 30. The local varieties are sold for `20 to `25 per kg.

Though, the price of the mangoes has gone up marginally compared to last year, the demand has not been affected due to the consumers’ fascination towards the sweet summer fruit.

With the local producers unable to meet the demand, Berhampur market depends on Andhra Pradesh for its stock that comes from Srikakulam, Vijayanagaram, Elluru, Nellore, Narsanapeta and Vijayawada. Some mangoes are also imported from Karnataka.

Traders said as mangoes are perishable, about 75 per cent of the businessmen prefer to be commission agents of Andhra wholesalers and about 25 per cent businessmen purchase it directly from the neighboring state.“Currently, we receive 15 to 20 trucks of mangoes from Andhra Pradesh every day,” said Nabin Acharya, a trader, adding that around 30 varieties of mangoes which are basically of three types including juicy, fleshy and fibrous are sold in the market. Of all the varieties, Baiganapalli is in maximum demand.

Presently, mango market in Berhampur has been operating near the Neelakantheswar temple since 1995. Earlier, it was near the St. Stephens Church Ground for 17 years and prior to that, at Khwaja Sahi here. The mango market is a seasonal one and runs for four months every year - April to July. Till date, 76 stalls have been set up by nearly 40 wholesalers with 75 per cent commission agents.

Berhampur city also supplies mangoes to various places within the State and neighboring states such as West Bengal. Source: Express News Service