Nagpurians are high on oranges

While mango has been undisputedly crowned the king of fruits, in Nagpur, orange is the prince. A visit to the fruit markets across Kalamna, Cotton Market and Mangalwari will validate the popularity quotient of the citrus fruit among people. In its peak seaso n, the luscious lot has flooded the markets in the city and buyers are quite gung-ho, trying to get a good bargain.We update you more on this fruit saga...
Prices soar with popularity
In the season of oranges, the rates are expected to be reasonable, however this year, buyers are quite disappointed with the inflating rates of oranges. A wholesale fruit seller of Kalamna, Abdul Majid explains what led to the rise in the prices of the citrus fruit. “Unseasonal rains in October and November damaged lakhs of trees around the city. While we used to get 50-60 ton of oranges every week last year in this season, this year only 27-35 ton fruit is arriving every week,” says Abdul.
While this was the reality check of the wholesale market, a wholesaler in Kalamna, Balkishan Hotwani says, “Last year, the rate of oranges was Rs 25- Rs 30 a kg and Rs 50- Rs 55 for a dozen. This year, the rate of 1 kg orange is Rs 55 and a dozen costs Rs 100.”
Though the prices have soared, there’s no dearth of people visiting these markets to buy oranges. One of the orange sellers in Cotton Market, Haribhau Rao says, “Last year, demonetisation affected the business, but this year, the business is above average. On an average, 90-100 people visit my shop to buy oranges, they ask for bargain which we can’t give because of the high prices we have to pay to the dealers. In spite of all this, the sale of oranges is brisk.”
High on demand
Nagpur is synonymous with oranges. This season, there are some unique varieties in the oranges tantalising the tastebuds of connoisseurs. “The current season marks the arrival of the seedless variety of the oranges from Vidarbha belt and it is very popular among the buyers. The prices vary from Rs 120 - Rs 150 a dozen,” says Avinash Waghmare, a retailer from Shukrawari Market, adding, “Oranges have come from across the state in all shapes and sizes, but people prefer to go with medium size ones that are extremely sweet.”
Going places
The oranges grown in the region have a huge market, nationally and internationally. Orange dealers are now aiming for the American market where Nagpur oranges are giving a befitting competition to their Californian counterparts. Orange dealer Vijay Lalwani says, “Nagpur oranges are being exported in large quantity this season as the popularity of Nagpur oranges has increased in America. However the sad reality is that this year, the production is 55 per cent less compared to last year.”