Mangoes have turned dearer in Tiruchi as the hot weather has affected the cultivation and overall yield in Tamil Nadu, traders and farmers have said.
The Tiruchi district, which has 2,000 hectares under mango cultivation, grows Bangloura and Neelam varieties. Senior officials in the Horticulture Department said the heat had affected trees on around 1,700 hectares this year. “We have recorded a 50% decrease in yield in Marungapuri, Vaiyyampatti, and Manpparai, while the remaining blocks have seen a 25% decline,” said an official.
Mango plantations in Pudukottai and other areas had reported a significant amount of flower drop caused by high temperature in the past week.
“This year’s mango season has had a dull start with just one or two tonnes arriving per day. We hope the situation will improve once it rains,” A.M.P. Abdul Hakkim, president, Tiruchi Gandhi Market Anaithu Vyabarigal Pothu Nala Sangam, told The Hindu.
The Senthoora, Imam Pasand, Neelam, Kallamani, and Malgova varieties usually herald the arrival of the mango season that lasts from early May to July. Kallamani is retailing at ₹250-₹300 a kg while Malgova is priced upwards of ₹140 a kg.
Gandhi Market has approximately 20 wholesalers and 250 retailers dealing in mangoes. Mr. Hakkim said that business was expected to be slow this year because of the reduced yield. “This could cause prices to rise further as the supply will not match the demand,” an official said.
The receding groundwater level caused by lack of rain had affected many farmers this year in Tamil Nadu. “Even though mango does not require flood irrigation, the northeast monsoon was not followed by adequate rain in the later months. This has delayed the natural growth cycle of the fruit throughout the State,” said the manager of a mango plantation in Srirangam.
