It was a sweet deal for farmers from several States, including Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Maharashtra, who had come to the city to sell mangoes, as they not only managed to sell all the produce they had brought, but also found new customers. 

This was thanks to Nabkisan’s Mambazha Mela, an effort to bring together 16 farmer-producer organisations that produce and process mangoes. 

Two-time national award-winning farmer from Pethanaickanpalayam in Salem, S. Jayaraman, who welcomed the effort, said he was able to get several new customers due to the sale at a mall in the city. “I got mangoes like Salem Gundu, Bangloora, Malgova and Imampasand from Karumandurai, a hill station. People who tasted the fruit called back and said they had forgotten how good mangoes tasted,” he said, adding that such markets should be organised for other products like millets and vegetables, too. 

M. Parameshwari of the DWC Trust of Chinnamannur in Theni said that their value-added products, including mango pickles and mangoes in salt (uppilittadhu) did well. “Nobody in our area has freezer vans, and so we had to bring the mangoes by bus. Some of them got damaged during transit, as the gunny bags were stacked at the bottom,” she said. 

Mohan Karthik, senior vice-president, Nabkisan, which is a subsidiary of Nabard, said that all the mangoes brought to the mela were sold. “Farmers were also able to get new customers for their produce. This was a pilot programme. We will obtain feedback from the farmers,” he said.