Watermelons have arrived at the wholesale markets of Batasingaram and Jambagh, bringing joy to many who have been waiting for the juicy and refreshing summer fruit.
On Monday, 50-80 trucks of watermelons from Mahabubnagar, Zaheerabad, Jogulamba Gadwal, and a few districts in neighbouring Maharashtra and Karnataka arrived at the Batasingaram fruit market. Summer fruit is expected to arrive in greater numbers in the coming days.
At the wholesale market, a kilogram of watermelon is sold for Rs 5-8 and in retail, it goes for Rs 15. “This year, the arrivals are encouraging and the number of trucks loaded with watermelons will increase in the coming days. Compared to previous years, the prices are comparatively low during this time of the year,” says Batasingaram market secretary Ch Narsimha Reddy.
Aside from watermelon, musk melon is also making its way into the markets from the districts of Telangana. Every day, approximately 40 trucks of muskmelons arrive at the market. “The market gets more of locally grown muskmelon which is sold for Rs 15- 20/kg wholesale. Each fruit weighs approximately around 2 kg,” he says. In the retail market, however, there is a price difference of nearly Rs 10/kg.
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Shaik Siraj, a local vendor at Afzalgunj, says he keeps a margin of Rs 10-12 per kg to cover transportation costs, damages and profits. “Quite often, fruits get damaged during transportation and we have to cover up for such losses. Moreover, we also have to pay helpers at our fruit shops, which has to be taken into account while setting the retail prices,” he says.
Oranges are also arriving in the market, with approximately 20 truckloads arriving daily from Maharashtra over the last week. Each truck transports 600-800 cartons of fruit, with each carton selling for Rs 800 in the wholesale market.
Many people are flocking to wholesale market yards because of the low prices. Sai Ram, a resident of Puranapul, says he gets quality fruit at a low price. “The summer is setting in and we have started to buy a lot of fruit to stay hydrated,” he says.
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