Farmers find new customers at Nabard’s mango fest

Mambazha Mela is going on at Chennai Mall on Sunday 14 June 2026. | Photo credit: JOTHI RAMALINGAM B

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

This happened thanks to the Mambazha Mela of Nabkisan, an effort to bring together 16 organizations of farmers and producers that produce and process mangoes.

A two-time farmer from Salem’s Pethanaickanpalayam, S. Jayaraman, who welcomed the effort, said he was able to get several new customers through the sale at the 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 and said they had forgotten how good mango tastes,” he said, adding that such markets should be organized for other products like millets and vegetables.

M. Parameshwari of DWC Trust of Chinnamannur in Theni said their value-added products including mango pickles and mango in salt (uppilittadhu) have done well. “No one in our area has freezer trucks, so we had to bring the mangoes by bus. Some of them were damaged during transport because the bags were stacked on the bottom,” she said.

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

Published – 14 Jun 2026 21:40 IST