The price of Shankarpura mallige or jasmine grown in Shankarpura and its surrounding villages in Udupi district, has almost doubled recently on account of Ganesh Chaturthi here.
Shankarpura mallige, which enjoys the Geographical Indication tag, is quite sought-after during the festive season. This jasmine is strung together, not with a thread, but by a string made of plantain stalk. As many as 800 flowers go into the making of one ‘chendu’, while four chendus make one ‘atte’.
The attes are collected from farmers by agents and sold to retailers in Udupi, Mangalore and other places. The jasmine which was selling at Rs. 400 to Rs. 450 per atte on Tuesday, rose to Rs. 850-1,000 per atte on Sunday.
Sudhakar Devadiga, a flower seller in Udupi, said, “We expect a further increase in price in the next few days.”
The shortage of Shankarpura mallige also drives up the prices. Ramakrishna Sharma, a grower in Bantakal village, said, “In the next 15 days, as the shortage grows, the rates too will move up.”
However, Andrew Lobo, vice-president of Shankarpura Jasmine Flower Growers’ Association, said though the prices would increase, the supply of the flowers might not be affected.
