Early season brings Alphonso mangoes to Pune; box of 4 dozens priced from Rs 5000 to Rs 20,000

Meanwhile, mango growers from both Sindhudurg and Ratnagiri are cautious about the season and are hoping for a good harvest.

Mukund Joshi, a member of Hapus Amba Utpakad Vikreta Sahakari Sangh – a cooperative body of growers and sellers from Konkan area of the state, said the present arrivals are from “the jackpot” season, when farmers get good prices for their yields. “Some orchards, especially those from Devgad taluka, had benefited from good rain and favourable growing conditions. The arrivals are not much but farmers can command good prices,” he said.

Mandar Khedkar, a mango grower in Ratnagiri district, noted that his orchard is in the fruit-formation stage. “At present, our area has reported continuous days of high temperature. Orchards that have water stress would see fruit falling because of this. However, due to the good rain in the area, we are hopeful of a good harvest,” he said, adding that the next few days would be crucial.

In the neighbouring Karnataka, the mango season is expected to have a slow start. “Flowering has been late in some of the orchards. So fruit formation would be late,” said Rohan Ursal, a commission agent who deals with mango growers from Karnataka. Pune’s market would see good arrivals only in March or April, Ursal said.