Mumbai, India June Days of Mango Madness

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Maud Peters
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1 In News Focus #9, we travel to Mumbai on the west coast of India. This area is home to the Alphonso mango the King of Fruits. During the short mango season, some Indians eat the sweet fruit for breakfast, lunch and dinner. It has even become customary to give a dozen mangoes to friends, colleagues and bosses. Boxes of the yellow fruit are flown around the world to countries like Singapore and Kuwait where many Indians work. However, poor weather means that this year s harvest is poor and prices are high. If you are interested in finding out more about the King of Fruits, then click here. Mumbai, India June Days of Mango Madness Mangoes are a national obsession in India. The start of the mango season is headline news. It also signals the beginning of summer. Newspapers give daily updates on prices and availability. It has become customary for Indians to send boxes of mangoes to friends, colleagues and bosses as a mark of respect. Courier companies, such as DHL, have even started a special service shipping the delicate fruit to Indians living overseas. In particular, many mangoes find their way to Persian Gulf countries, such as Bahrain and Kuwait, where more than 6 million Indians are working. But to really enjoy mangoes at their best, many Indians argue that you have to fly to the city of Mumbai on the Konkan Coast of the subcontinent. This is where the beloved Alphonso mango nicknamed the King of Fruits -- grows in the countryside surrounding India s financial capital. The freshlypicked mangoes are transported tomumbai s famous Crawford Market and laid in a bed of hay for a whole week. This ensures that the fruit ripen evenly turning from emerald green to sunny yellow. The best specimens are picked out for corporate clients. The rest are then ready for the attentions of the shoppers who caress them gently and hold them to their faces. Buyers are hoping to catch a trace of mango perfume, which can just be detected as it leaks out of the skin of perfectly ripened fruit. A well-chosen fruit will reward the customer with sweet, smooth, wet flesh. It is often said that India has only two seasons: monsoon season and mango season. Monsoon season nurtures India s soil. Mango season nourishes India s soul. The mango season, however, is very short. It lasts only about 100 days, traditionally from late March through June. At the beginning of the season, the fruit is expensive and difficult to find. By the time the harvest peaks in June, mangoes are all over the place, cheap and available. Street vendors squeeze mango juice for around 20 rupees (about 30 yen). Fashionable bars mix mango cocktails for 20 times that amount. Many Indians eat mango for breakfast, lunch and dinner during the short mango season. Mango parties use the fruit in curries,

2 lassi drinks, sweetmeats like barfi and desserts such as shrikhand. But mango season is never complete until you have eatenaam ras. This translates as mango juice from the Gujarati language, but is actually thick mango purée. Customers don t bother with spoons and instead scoop up the stuff with puris, small, deep fried discs of fried wheat dough. A bowl of aam ras is available for around 65 rupees (90 yen). But not all is well with the Alphonso mango this year. For best results, the thinskinned Alphonso needs a stable winter during October to December and steady summer temperatures from March through June. Even a minor deviation or fluctuation in the weather or temperature disturbs the production cycle. However, a cold winter and unseasonable rains have interfered with the growing season. Farmers have produced fewer (and smaller) Alphonsosand there is now a severe shortageof the fruit in Mumbai. Dr. Subhash Chavan, a fruit research expert, explains that the temperature in the coastal Konkan region does not normally drop below 17 C. Unusually, it dipped below that for 65 days between December last year and February this year. As a result, the fertilization process of the mango was affected and yields dropped to 20% of the annual average. Following the small harvest, the price of the sweet-tasting Alphonso has doubled since Boxes of a dozen now sell for as much 2,500 rupees ( 3500). Alphonso aficionados around the world are holding their breath and hoping for better weather conditions next year.

[A] READING CHECK Are these sentences correct (C) or incorrect (I)? 1. When the mango season finishes, summer begins in India. (C) (I) 2. Company bosses give a box of mangoes to each worker.

3 [A] READING CHECK Are these sentences correct (C) or incorrect (I)? 1. When the mango season finishes, summer begins in India. (C) (I) 2. Company bosses give a box of mangoes to each worker. (C) (I) 3. Many Indians work overseas in countries like Kuwait. (C) (I) 4. Mumbai is the financial capital of India. (C) (I) 5. Alphonso mangoes are grown all over the subcontinent. (C) (I) 6. It is not advisable to eat a mango more than once a day. (C) (I) 7. Customers eat aam ras using small discs of fried dough. (C) (I) 8.Low temperatures do not affect how the mango fruit is fertilized. (C) (I) 9.This growing season, temperatures fell below 17C for six and a half days. (C) (I) 10. Prices of mangoes in Mumbai have risen slowly over the last 24 months. (C) (I)

4 [B] WORD FOCUS Fill in the blanks using the correct words below. Mumbai, India June Days of Mango Madness Mangoes are a national (1) in India. The start of the mango season is headline news. It also signals the beginning of summer. Newspapers give daily updates on prices and availability. It has become (2) for Indians to send boxes of mangoes to friends, colleagues and bosses as a mark of respect. Courier companies, such as DHL, have even started a special service (3) the delicate fruit to Indians living overseas. In particular, many mangoes find their way to Persian Gulf countries, such as Bahrain and Kuwait, where more than 6 million Indians are working. But to really enjoy mangoes at their best, many Indians argue that you have to fly to the city of Mumbai on the Konkan Coast of the subcontinent. This is where the beloved Alphonso mango nicknamed the King of Fruits -- grows in the (4) surrounding India s financial capital. The freshly picked mangoes are transported to Mumbai s famous Crawford Market and laid in a bed of hay for a whole week. This ensures that the fruit ripen evenly turning from emerald green to sunny yellow. The best specimens are (5) for corporate clients. The rest are then ready for the attentions of the shoppers who caress them gently and hold them to their faces. Buyers are hoping to catch a trace of mango perfume, which can just be detected as it leaks out of the skin of perfectly ripened fruit. A well-chosen fruit will reward the customer with sweet, smooth, wet flesh. It is often said that India has only two seasons: monsoon season and mango season. Monsoon season (6) India s soil. Mango season nourishes India s soul. The mango season, however, is very short. It lasts only about 100 days, traditionally from late March through June. At the beginning of the season, the fruit is expensive and difficult to find. By the time the harvest peaks in June, mangoes are all over the place, cheap and available. Street (7) squeeze mango juice for around 20 rupees (about 30 yen). Fashionable bars mix mango cocktails for 20 times that amount. Many Indians eat mango for breakfast, lunch and dinner during the short mango season. Mango parties use the fruit in curries, lassi drink, sweetmeats like barfi and desserts such as shrikhand. But mango season is never complete until you have eaten aam ras. This translates as mango juice from the Gujarati language, but is actually thick mango purée. Customers don t (8) spoons and instead scoop up the stuff with puris, small, deep fried discs of fried wheat dough. A bowl of aam ras is available for around 65 rupees (90 yen).

5 But not all is well with the Alphonso mango this year. For best results, the thinskinned Alphonso needs a stable winter during October to December and steady summer temperatures from March through June. Even a minor deviation or fluctuation in the weather or temperature disturbs the production cycle. However, a cold winter and unseasonable rains have interfered with the growing season. Farmers have produced fewer (and smaller) Alphonsos and there is now a severe shortage of the fruit in Mumbai. Dr. Subhash Chavan, a fruit research expert, explains that the temperature in the coastal Konkan region does not normally drop below 17 C. Unusually, it (9) that for 65 days between December last year and February this year. As a result, the fertilization process of the mango was affected and yields dropped to 20% of the annual average. Following the small harvest, the price of the sweet-tasting Alphonso has doubled since Boxes of a dozen now sell for as much 2,500 rupees ( 3500). Alphonso (10) around the world are holding their breath and hoping for better weather conditions next year. 1 (a) pastime (b) obesity (c) obsession 2 (a) tradition (b) customary (c) customer 3 (a) shipping (b) transport (c) shelving 4 (a) countryside (b) suburbs (c) markets 5 (a) swapped for (b) traded for (c) picked out 6 (a) nourishment (b) nurtures (c) natural 7 (a) agents (b) vendors (c) machines 8 (a) boil up (b) complain about (c) bother with 9 (a) dipped below (b) rose above (c) looked into 10 (a) novices (b) aficionados (c) affectionate [C] KEY PHRASES Complete these key phrases by matching words in column A and B. column A column B 1 The start of the mango season is a disturbs the production cycle. 2 DHL has a special service b instead scoop up the stuff with puris. 3 The freshly picked fruit is c headline news in India. 4 By the time the harvest peaks d and yields dropped sharply. 5 Customers don t bother with spoons e the price has doubled since and 6 Even a minor fluctuation f shipping the delicate fruit overseas. 7 As a result the fertilization process g laid in a bed of hay for a week. was affected 8 Following the small yields h mangoes are all over the place.

6 [D] SUMMARY Complete the history of the mango season by putting the sentences in the correct time order. a 3. The start of the mango season in March marked a 100 days of madness. b The mango season finished in June. c Customers smelled the fruit hoping to find one that is perfectly ripe. d Temperatures were unusually cold at the beginning of the year. e Alphonso mangoes were given to friends and colleagues as a special present. f Freshly picked mangoes were laid in a bed of hay to ripen evenly. g Mango trees produced fewer and smaller mangoes. Answers [A] READING CHECK Are these sentences correct (C) or incorrect (I)? 1. When the mango season finishes, summer begins in India. (I)(When the mango season begins, summer begins in India.) 2. Company bosses give a box of mangoes to each worker. (I)(Employees often give a box of mangoes to their bosses as a sign of respect.) 3. Many Indians work overseas in countries like Kuwait. (C) 4. Mumbai is the financial capital of India. (C) 5. Alphonso mangoes are grown all over the subcontinent. (I)(Alphonso mangoes are only grown in the countryside around Mumbai.) 6. It is not advisable to eat a mango more than once a day. (I)(Many Indians eat a mango for breakfast, lunch and dinner.) 7. Customers eat aam ras using small discs of fried dough. (C) 8.Low temperatures do not affect how the mango fruit is fertilized. (I)(The thin-skinned fruit is affected by low temperatures and this does affect fertilization.) 9.This growing season, temperatures fell below 17C for six and a half days. (I) (Temperatures fell below 17C for 65 days.) 10. Prices of mangoes in Mumbai have risen slowly over the last 24 months. (I)(Prices have risen steeply over the last 24 months.) [B] WORD FOCUS Fill in the blanks using the correct words below. 1 (a) pastime (b) obesity (c) obsession 2 (a) tradition (=> (b) customary (c) customer traditional) 3 (a) shipping (b) transport (=> (c) shelving transporting) 4 (a) countryside (b) suburbs (c) markets 5 (a) swapped for (= exchanged for) (b) traded for (c) picked out

7 6 (a) nourishment (b) nurtures (c) natural (=>nourishes) 7 (a) agents (b) vendors (c) machines 8 (a) boil up (b) complain about (c) bother with 9 (a) dipped below (b) rose above (c) looked into (=>showed strong growth) 10 (a) novices (<=>opposite of aficionada) (b) aficionados (c) affectionate [C] KEY PHRASES Complete these key phrases by matching words in column A and B. column A column B 1 The start of the mango season is c headline news in India. 2 DHL has a special service f shipping the delicate fruit overseas. 3 The freshly picked fruit is g laid in a bed of hay for a week. 4 By the time the harvest peaks h mangoes are all over the place. 5 Customers don t bother with spoons and b instead scoop up the stuff with puris. 6 Even a minor fluctuation a disturbs the production cycle. 7 As a result the fertilization process d and yields dropped sharply. was affected 8 Following the small yields e the price has doubled since [D] SUMMARY Complete the history of the mango season by putting the sentences in the correct time order. d 1. Temperatures were unusually cold at the beginning of the year. g 2 Mango trees produced fewer and smaller mangoes. a 3 The start of the mango season in March marked a 100 days of madness. f 4 Freshly picked mangoes were laid in a bed of hay to ripen evenly. c 5 Customers smelled the fruit hoping to find one that is perfectly ripe. e 6 Alphonso mangoes were given to friends and colleagues as a special present. b 7 The mango season finished in June.

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