Oranges, melons flood wholesale markets in Hyderabad as summer nears

The arrival of watermelons at the wholesale markets of Batasingaram and Jambagh has brought cheer to many who have been eagerly waiting for the juicy and refreshing summer fruit

Hyderabad: The arrival of watermelons at the wholesale markets of Batasingaram and Jambagh has brought cheer to many who have been eagerly waiting for the juicy and refreshing summer fruit.

On Monday, 50-80 trucks of watermelons arrived at the Batasingaram fruit market from Mahabubnagar, Zaheerabad, Jogulamba Gadwal and a few districts of neighbouring Maharashtra and Karnataka. The arrival of the summer fruit is expected to increase further in the days to come.

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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.

Apart from watermelon, musk melon is also reaching the markets from the districts of Telangana. On average, around 40 trucks of muskmelons are arriving at the market every day. “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.

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 around 20 truckloads from Maharashtra coming in every day for the last one week. Each truck carries 600-800 cartons of the fruit and each carton is sold for Rs 800 in the wholesale market.

The low prices are drawing many to wholesale market yards. 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.