The Pran Mango Fest is under way at Rabindra Sarobar in Dhanmondi, Dhaka, where buyers can buy pure, adulteration-free mangoes brought straight from the orchards. Today is the last day. Buyers say they feel at ease buying from such a fair of pure mangoes in the capital. With adulteration and formalin everywhere, they are glad to be able to buy guaranteed mangoes and eat them with their families without worry.

On the morning of Saturday, 12 July, buyers at Rabindra Sarobar were seen picking mangoes of their choice. Export-quality mangoes, not usually found in ordinary markets, are also available at the fest.

Sellers are happy to bring pure mangoes from their orchards straight to buyers. Buyers, for their part, say it is hard to find a trustworthy place to buy mangoes at a time when formalin-treated and adulterated goods flood the market. They look for 100 per cent pure products especially for the children and elderly in their families. Finding adulteration-free mangoes at the fest, many are buying more.

At the fair, Chosa mangoes were selling at Tk 160 a kg, export-quality Fazli at Tk 80, BARI-4 at Tk 70, Haribhanga at Tk 99, Amrapali at Tk 110 and Surma at Tk 80.

Buyer Rina Parvin said it is hard to find adulteration-free mangoes, and there are few trustworthy places to buy them. "Here the orchard owners have brought the mangoes themselves. Just looking at them, they seem free of adulteration and formalin. Formalin is harmful to the human body. I bought 10 kg. At least I can eat mangoes with my family without worrying."

Buyer Sayed Rahman said the mangoes looked good and pure, and such events should be held often. "At least I can eat some good mangoes. I saw some mangoes here going rotten, which means no formalin has been used; if there were formalin, they would not rot. I bought 15 kg in all. I will keep 10 kg at home and send 5 kg to my daughter's house."

Imran brought mangoes from his own orchard in Rajshahi. "We brought 50 crates in all from our own orchard. These mangoes are 100 per cent healthy, with no medicine applied. They are selling well, and I hope all will be sold today," he said.

Anwar, a seller at another stall, said they had brought 120 crates and sales were good. "There is no formalin in the mangoes, which is why their skin is turning somewhat dark. Many buyers do not want them because of the colour. But we tell them these are formalin-free, 100 per cent pure mangoes. No one will be cheated by buying them."

Greenly has set up a stall with mangoes from Chapainawabganj. Its seller Yasir Arafat said: "These are from our own orchard. We have brought them straight from the orchard, so we can sell at a lower price. The fest will run until 9 o'clock today, and I hope our stock will be sold out before then."

Buyers who buy 3 kg of mangoes at the fest get 250 ml of Pran Frooto mango juice free, and those who buy 5 kg get 500 ml. A concert has also been arranged for the afternoon. The three-day mango fest began last Thursday.

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