Bengaluru: This year’s Mango Festival will see a major change. Instead of a centralized event, officials have decided to organize mango fairs at various locations, aiming to address supply disruptions and ensure easier access to goods.
The Karnataka State Mango Development and Marketing Corporation (KSMDMCL) is changing how it hosts the annual mango festival. Because of weird weather, mangoes are not ripening all at once this year. Since the harvest is uneven across different areas, it is hard to hold one big event like before.
The first Mango Festival (fair) will be held in Cubbon Park and will continue until May 17. The fair will feature approximately 50 mango stalls and seven jackfruit stalls. To maintain the freshness and quality of the fruit, similar events will be held across the city in phases as different varieties of mangoes become ready for harvesting.
This time, mangoes are arriving at different times, so sales are being divided. Fruit from places like Ramanagara and northern Karnataka are already ready, but Kolar mangoes are taking a little longer to ripen. Because of this, officials are planning to hold a second, separate mango fair at the Lalbagh Botanical Garden when the Kolar mangoes are ready.
The disruption in harvest cycles has been linked to recent weather disturbances, including hailstorms and pest infestations such as thrips, which have affected orchards in districts like Kolar and Chikkaballapur. Reports suggest that around 8–10% of the crop in some areas has been damaged or lost prematurely, further complicating supply chains this season.
In addition to the main venues, organisers are also planning to host smaller, localised mini-melas in residential and commercial areas such as Sahakarnagar, Electronics City, Whitefield and Basavanagudi. These neighbourhood events are aimed at bringing fresh produce closer to consumers, reducing the need for long-distance travel while also encouraging direct sales between farmers and buyers.
This year, the fairs are focusing on naturally ripened mangoes without chemicals (carbide-free), so that people can get naturally ripened mangoes instead of chemically ripened ones. You’ll find many popular mangoes there, such as Badami, Rasapuri, Mallika, and Sendura. In addition, the GI-tagged ‘Kari Ishad’ mango, a special variety from Uttara Kannada, will also be available.
Now, farmers are selling directly to customers using traditional methods as well as digital platforms such as websites and WhatsApp-based sales channels. This hybrid approach helps them find more buyers and rely less on middlemen, especially when supplies are uncertain.
