Team Herald
MARGAO: The Netravali Matoli Bazaar 2016 organised by the Atal Gram Development Agency Goa was a resounding success and drew in crowds from across South Goa. Lohia Maidan, Margao played host to the bazaar over the weekend, which was open from 8 am to 9 pm.
Self Help Groups comprising of rural women especially the Scheduled Tribes of Netravali brought in products such as torin, bede, nal, chafo, patri, kalyacho gad, mandolli kelli, flowers, sweets and items for decoration (matoli) at the bazaar, which aimed at inculcating entrepreneurship among the rural women especially the Scheduled Tribes of Netravali.
Many of the visitors were impressed with the variety of exotic vegetables, fruits, nuts, berries, leaves, grass etc and learnt about the forest culture and its produce from these tribal women.
Describing his experience at the bazaar, Benaulim resident Hansel Vaz said, “At the Matoli Market one Velip tribal encouraged by my fascination for the exotic forest produce offered me a fruit. The fruit looked ordinary, a thin waxy glossy shell encapsulated the soft fruit. The fruit itself had the most alluring hue of orange.”
He continued saying, “Much like a dried apricot, with a waxy – velvety delicate skin. It had a tangy and sour and mildly sweet taste but with a delightful perfume, much like that of passion fruit. She was the only person to stock this particular fruit.”
“So I and bought all her stock (6 bunches). But there was no way I was going to wait for an entire year in the hope the fruit may come back again. When I asked her for more details, I got to know that it’s a forest fruit called ‘ambatem’. I’m guessing a descriptive name since the word ‘ambat’ translates to sour from Konkani. It’s a tall tree and one has to climb it to harvest the fruit,” said added Vaz.
