Pakistan mangoes sell at Rs 80/kg in Delhi as against Rs 150-200 for desi variety

NEW DELHI: Mangoes from Pakistan are giving a tough competition to local varieties in domestic and export markets this season. At the fag end of the season, Pakistan's chausa and fazli varieties are coming through Poonch and Srinagar to the north Indian market. 

In retail, Pakistani mangoes are being sold at Rs 80 a kg while prices of the domestic crop are at Rs 150-200 a kg. "The taste is very sweet and the colour is good. Leading retailers are buying them as the prices are competitive," said Chamanlal Dhingra, a leading mango trader at the Azadpur mandi in Delhi. Traders said the king of fruits first came from Pakistan in 2012 through Jammu and Kashmir in small quantities. 

"This year, the harvest is good and we expect arrivals from Pakistan to continue for the next 15-20 days," said Paramjeet Singh, owner of the Surjeet Mango Trader at Azadpur mandi, which is Asia's largest fruits and vegetables market. The trader said more than 18 mantrucks of Pakistani mangoes arrived through Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday and over 8 trucks, each carrying 9-10 tonne, arrived on Monday. 

Demand is largely coming from the Delhi national capital region, Punjab, Haryana and parts of Uttar Pradesh. "The Indian crop from the Saharanpur belt of Uttar Pradesh is available barely for the next 5-7 days. To meet the huge demand in the domestic market, mangoes from across the border are welcome," said Singh. He said the fruit could not be sent to other parts of the country due to its short shelf-life. 

With increasing demand and supplies, traders expect the prices to crash. "If arrivals of the Paksitani mangoes increase, prices may fall to Rs40-50 a kg," said Dhingra. The crop was largely coming from Pakistan's Punjab province. In New Delhi, Naeem Anwar, minister (trade), Pakistan High Commission, said mango was one of the major export items from Pakistan. 

"In India, we think there is a good market for Pakistan's mangoes like sindhri, anwar ratol, dusheri and chausa. However, a custom duty on mango at 35% and above is discouraging Pakistani traders and exporters," he said adding that India and Pakistan were working to overcome the tariff and non-tariff barriers to ensure consumers get a taste of Pakistani varieties.

Afghan Taliban attack US base near Pakistan border: officials

Taliban suicide bombers and gunmen dressed as Afghan police attacked a US base near the Pakistani border on Monday, sparking a shootout that left all three assailants dead, officials said.
No member of the US-led NATO mission in Afghanistan was killed in the assault on the base in Nangarhar province, said a spokesman for the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF).
"There were a series of explosions that occurred in the vicinity of a forward operating base in Nangarhar province," an ISAF spokesman told AFP.
The military later described it as an "attempted but unsuccessful coordinated attack by enemy forces".
"There were three enemy forces killed during the attack. We can confirm that no ISAF personnel were killed as a result of this incident," it said in a statement.
NATO combat troops are gradually withdrawing from Afghanistan and are due to finish their mission completely by the end of 2014, after presidential elections next April.
Afghan officials said Monday's attack took place at Torkham, which borders Pakistan and straddles a key NATO overland supply route into landlocked Afghanistan from the nearest sea port of Karachi.
Ahmad Zia Abdulzai, Nangarhar governor's spokesman, said insurgents first attacked NATO supply trucks.
"Today morning, Taliban insurgents attacked and burned supply trucks delivering supplies to NATO which belonged to foreign forces near the US base in Torkham," he told AFP.
"Later, three armed suicide bombers started gunfire and clashes with Afghan forces and US forces, and they were killed after three hours of fighting.
"At the moment, the stand-off is over, and the situation is under control."
Zabihullah Mujahid, a spokesman for the Taliban which is leading a 12-year insurgency against Western troops and the Afghan government, claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement sent to the media.
The Taliban have launched a spate of attacks across the country in recent days, with scores killed in suicide bombings, ambushes and rocket attacks. They also killed five aid workers in the west.
On Sunday the bullet-riddled bodies of seven civilians kidnapped one week earlier by the Taliban were found in Ghazni province just south of the capital.
Also on Sunday Afghanistan's ambassador to Pakistan and potential candidate for next year's presidential election, Omar Daudzai, was appointed acting interior minister.
President Hamid Karzai, who has led Afghanistan since the 2001 US-led invasion removed the Taliban from power, is barred from standing for a third term.
He has said he will not back anyone in the April 5 vote, but Daudzai is seen as one of his closest associates and loyalists.
Daudzai, 55, from the biggest ethnic group the Pashtuns, was a member of the Hezb-e-Islami faction during the Soviet occupation and later went on to work for the United Nations.
Interior minister Mujtaba Patang was voted out by parliament in July over accusations that he had failed to thwart the threat from Taliban rebels.
Afghanistan's 350,000-strong security forces are suffering a steep rise in attacks as the NATO mission winds down, with police and army casualties said to have increased by 15-20 percent since 2011.
The election to succeed Karzai is seen as the key test of whether 12 years of massive international military and aid intervention has been worthwhile.
Karzai recently named controversial former warlord Abdul Rab Rasul Sayyaf, 2009 runner-up Abdullah Abdullah and former finance minister Ashraf Ghani as possible candidates.
Other possibilities include Qayum Karzai, the president's brother, and former interior minister Ali Ahmad Jalali.
Karzai has pledged to ensure a smooth election, but international donors have expressed concern about whether the vote will produce a credible result after the 2009 poll was marred