World famous for its rich aroma and sweetness, the Dussheri mango will be available to consumers at cheap prices this season, thanks to a bountiful production of around 47 tonnes in Uttar Pradesh.
The price of one of the most sought after mango variety is expected to remain between Rs 25-40 kg and likely to dip further to Rs 10 per kg once the monsoon sets it
"The expected production of mango including world famous Dussehri from Uttar Pradesh will be about 46-47 tonnes despite losses due to dust storm and untimely rains," President Mango Growers' Association of India Insram Ali told PTI.
"The mango production last year was about 40-42 MT and due to early onset of summer the production this year is very good,"
"The famous Dussehri which has already hit the market will be in common man's reach with prices likely to remain between Rs 25-40 per kg. The size of mango this time is small as compared to previous year," Ali said.
Mango growers expect the prices to come down further to Rs 10 per kg once the rains start.
"Unlike other varieties, the shelf life of Dussehri is not much and due to this the rates come down when monsoon begins. This is why we are expecting prices to come down to to Rs 10 a kilo once monsoon sets in," said Anurag, a mango grower of Malilhabad - famous for the mango orchards.
Mumbai and Delhi are the biggest consumers of Dussehri in the country while the king of fruits is exported to Gulf and other South East Asian countries too.
The mango belts in UP comprise Lucknow (Lucknow, Malihabad, Bakshi-ka-Talaab), Saharanpur, Sambhal, Amroha and Muzaffarnagar districts.
Lucknow belt is spread over 25,000 hectares, which
produces world famous Dussehri variety, accounting for over 75 per cent of the total produce.
Despite good production mango export is unlikely to increase for "lack" of state government support, rues Insram.
"Though production is good, mango export is not likely to increase with farmers not getting any benefits. At present state government provides subsidy of Rs 26 per kg (comprising Rs 13 per kg for brand promotion and air freight), which is not sufficient. Also, the process to claim it is very cumbersome", he said.
"We have requested the government to increase the subsidy to 75 per cent so that mango growers can export their produce. But no decision has been taken in this regard," he lamented.
Besides, Dussehri, some famous mango varieties from UP are Langda, Chausa, Amprapali and Mallika.
