Mancurad price still out of reach of aam aadmi

PANAJI: The king of fruits continues to be unpopular in Goa’s markets even though its price has dropped sharply since last month. The Mancurad, which sold for Rs 3,500 a dozen last month, is currently being sold for Rs 1,200 a dozen. Yet, locals are evading the golden fruit, waiting for its price to drop even further.

“Last month, a single Mancurad mango sold for Rs 300 and an Alphonso cost Rs 100, but Goa’s affluent stepped forward to buy them,” said fruit vendor Tabrez Mokashi. However, he says, locals are now evading the golden fruit since they’re aware of the annual trend of prices stabilising next month. As a result, some vendors are open to negotiating with customers, sometimes selling the fruit at Rs 800 a dozen.



“There is a lot of mango produce this season, but they’re coming from Ratnagiri, Devgad and Goa,” says fruit vendor Dinu M. “Once other areas start supplying the fruit and more varieties fill up the local market, we can start reducing the rates.”

Dona Paula resident Sunil Das says, “Some people are ready to pay thousands, but it’s not affordable for the average salaried person. We’ll have to wait for 10-15 days for the rates to fall.”

Locals are also apprehensive about the quality of mangoes currently available.

“Mangoes imported from other states are sometimes hastily ripened using urea, baking powder and other fertilizers,” said Caranzalem resident B V Pai. “Fruits must be allowed to naturally ripen. A lot of people are not keen on buying mangoes now because of these issues,” he said.