King of fruits turns into costly affair

Mango is making its presence felt in the market and houses this season. However, many people are unhappy as they can’t savour the flavour to their heart’s content due to the high price of the ‘King of fruits’.

The high cost is attributed to the low yield of the fruit this year. Even though a variety of mangoes are being sold in fruit shops and push-carts across the city, customers are having to pay the hefty price fixed by vendors.

Apart from Kollegal, Santhemarahalli and Haradanahalli areas, mango isn’t grown much in the district. The demand is met from neighbouring districts . This year a majority of traders are purchasing the fruit from Mysore.

Prices are fixed based on the variety and size. One kilogram of Rasapuri mangoes are being sold at Rs 40-50, while Badami is available at Rs 70 per kg.

It has been a common practise by traders to use chemicals to ripen the fruit, which results in loss of taste. However, customers have to buy such fruits even though it affects the health.

Even rural areas have stopped using organic methods to ripen the fruits and are instead using chemical powders to fasten the ripening.

A few push-cart vendors provide cut fruits to customers, which doctors observe could lead to an epidemic. The city municipal council needs to take measures to ensure that mangoes being sold by push-cart vendors are covered.

Despite the soaring prices, the urge to purchase mangoes hasn’t reduced, says resident Parashivappa.