Green mangoes have come to market with Baishakh. They are on sale in almost every market in the capital, with buyers paying Tk 80 to Tk 100 a kg.

At Hatirpool bazar on Saturday, 19 April, almost every vegetable shop had green mangoes, as if they too were now a vegetable. Traders said sales were good, as many people buy them on a whim.

In many areas green mangoes are also sold on pavements by the roadside, besides the markets. To catch buyers' eyes, many sellers tie the mangoes with their leaves on string and hang them up.

A seller named Bijoy Das said people buy the mangoes to eat mixed raw, to cook in mango dal, or for pickles. Most of the mangoes come from districts around Dhaka.

Hatirpool bazar seller Faridul Islam said he bought the mangoes wholesale at Karwan Bazar for Tk 270–300 a palla (5 kg) and is selling them at Tk 80 a kg.

In the Rampura Bou Bazar area mangoes were selling even cheaper, at Tk 60 a kg. Seller Hasan said wholesale prices vary from day to day. When there are storms and rain prices fall sharply, and when it is hotter demand rises and so do prices. People are buying even at high prices because the fruit is new, he said, but in a few days prices will not be this high.

Monika Hasan was buying green mangoes at that market. "I'm taking them to cook in dal. I also eat green mango mashed or mixed," she said. "It's a new fruit, so I feel like eating it. In Dhaka there's no option but to buy."

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.