TEAM HERALD
teamherald@herald-goa.com
PANJIM: The king of fruits -Goa’s delicious Mankurad mango, may well be beyond one palette this season as a single mango may cost nothing less than Rs 250.
While the season for mangoes is just beginning and the rush for the first flush is yet to begin, the pricing this season is likely to repel not only tourists but Goans as well from savouring their favorite delight.
In both North and South Goa vendors have started marketing small quantities of mangoes and have expressed fears that this year the crop could be much lesser than before, as mango plantations keep shrinking.
“Too much of pollution, bad weather and early cropping of the fruit in raw form are reducing mango yield,” said Kailash Moraskar a wholesale fruit vendor in Panjim market.
He expects that the mango crop this season will be down by at least 35 per cent this year. However, another wholesale vendor in the Panjim market pointed out that this year fruit vendors were expecting a good crop. Vinay Parsekar however said, “Goa’s mango production is dwindling,” adding further that this year mango prices would remain high even upto April.
Parsekar who has been in the fruit business for several years points out that prices of all fruits are soaring as unseasonal weather across the country is damaging both produce of fruit and vegetables.
Secretary of the Goa Botanical Society Minguel Braganza agreed with the vending community on this issue, pointing out that in Goa mango production has primarily remained a hobby and not carried out for commercial purpose.
“What we are now seeing in the market are mangoes from Kudal which are also known as the Goa Mankurad,” he explained.
Braganza pointed out that in Maharashtra farmers are using Cultor, a hormone for the purpose. He said that while Goa is going to see a decline in the mango produce this year the scenario is very different in Vengurla and Sawantwadi and produce from there would flood Goan markets.
“I expect a steep hike in mango prices to continue till mid-April,” said the horticulturist pointing out further that it is time people in Goa took interest in mango cultivation in the state.
He said that in order to get better produce there is need to manure the mango trees, prune trees, remove parasites and weed.
The next edition of the Konkan fruit fest will try to create awareness among the people on this aspect. Braganza also said that he is working on a proposal for a college of agriculture at Don Bosco Farm, Sulcorna which will focus on this.
