For the second year again in a row, mango-lovers of Hyderabad may
be finding it hard to eat a chemical-free variant of the `king of
fruits', with the traders still using prohibited chemicals to
artificially ripen them. There is absolutely no check on this
malpractice causing danger to human lives.
According
to officials of Gaddiannaram Fruit Market, the largest in the city,
mango traders are again plucking these fruits early and ripening them
now artificially so that they can start supplying them first in the
market. This is because of the short mango trading season and the high
expenditure incurred for cold storage facilities.
The
high court had earlier prohibited using calcium carbide and described
the unscrupulous traders as worse than terrorists since these chemicals
will be killing generations of people with a slow poison. Unless ground
level action takes place, such things cannot be curbed.
Nearly
80 percent of mangoes in Hyderabad are procured directly from Telangana
and Andhra Pradesh’s farmers. There is a high possibility that mangoes
consumed about 90 % in Hyderabad are contaminated! It is about time the
authorities show some concern.
