Mango Fest to end on June 26

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM:  Enjoy the grand discount sale, seems to the message from the organisers of the National Mango Fest which is on at Kanakakkunnu. The 11-day event, which will wind up on Sunday, has already garnered so much response that now the organisers are selling the varieties at much lesser prices. The varieties which cost Rs 80-90 are now priced at Rs 30-40 at the fest. The interesting fact is, in general, mango prices have come down by a great extent in and around the city and the organisers of the fest believe that it has got to do with the response the fest has received all these days. “We have varieties which are sold at Rs 25 per kg. In fact, the mango prices in and around the city have come down and we believe it has got a lot to do with the National Mango Fest,” said Ajai Chandra, Project Officer, State Horticulture Mission (SHM)-Kerala, which is providing all technical support to the fest. The Mango fest  has been organised by Mango Growers’ Association and SV Events. In the last four days, nearly 49.5 tonnes of mangoes have been sold, according to a statement issued here. The amount collected would come to around Rs 14.5 lakh.  Karnataka and Tamil Nadu varieties have been reigning supreme at the fest. Mallika and Alphonso varieties from Karnataka have been much in demand throughout the fest. The farmers from Karnataka had to bring in more stock when the Mallika variety got over in between the fest. “However, it is theBanganapally variety which has registered the maximum sale,” said Ajai Chandra. The local varieties too have won many fans. For example, Panchavarnam and Sapota varieties have many takers. However, among the lot, the Kotturkkonam variety became a hit and it remains to be seen whether the remaining stock would last till Sunday, he added. The success stories of the mango farmers of Muthalamada, of the Ex-Servicemen Cooperative Colony Farm, Vettilappara, Athirappally and of Sanghamaithri in Pallichal, Thiruvananthapuram, were introduced to the visitors at the fest. The sale of saplings and mango products too have been going on well at the fest.