Latest news with #SSrinivasan
Time of India
14-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Imported, exotic fruits flood supermarkets
Chennai: South African pears, Peruvian blueberries, Australian oranges, New Zealand apples and Chinese grapes, each with stickers showing their country of origin, are on display in the neighbourhood supermarkets as wholesale vendors in Koyambedu import them in tonnes. On the other side of the aisle are native-grown exotic fruits such as dragon fruit, jamun, fig, mangosteen, rambutan and dates sourced from different parts of the country, including Ooty and Kodaikanal. "The official fruit season has begun in Chennai," said Fruit Association president S Srinivasan who imports fruits from several countries. "The season for mangoes and jackfruit is coming to an end, but native apples from Himachal Pradesh are yet to come. Imported fruit usually fills the gap." You Can Also Check: Chennai AQI | Weather in Chennai | Bank Holidays in Chennai | Public Holidays in Chennai In the past 10 days, the red, firm, dense, remarkably crisp, and honey-flavoured Royal Gala apples from New Zealand have been among the fastest-moving products at the wholesale market, priced at 4,500 to 4,800 for a 17kg box. The season for apples from Turkey just ended, vendors said. While Egyptian oranges are being sold now, vendors are placing orders for oranges and mandarins (smaller oranges) from South Africa, which are likely to arrive in a couple of weeks. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like An engineer reveals: One simple trick to get internet without a subscription Techno Mag Learn More Undo South African pears, costing between 25 and 30 a piece in the wholesale market for a box containing 100 or 120, are now on sale. As are pears from Chile, priced at 2,400 to 2,600 for a 12kg cart. "Chile is a significant global producer and exporter of pears, particularly European pear varieties. They are tasty too, but the shelf life for these varieties is shorter," said S Karthik, a wholesale vendor. So are Peru's blueberries. A carton containing a dozen 120g boxes of this fruit is sold at 1,900-2,000 in the wholesale market. "In supermarkets, it's sold at 350-450 per box. This is because they may wrinkle or shrink fast. Wastage pushes up prices of these fruits." Alongside these imported varieties are Indian native varieties, mostly sourced from Ooty, Kodaikanal, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Maharashtra, said market management committee member K Jayaraman, a wholesale trader. "We have the best of mangosteen and rambutans this year. Jamuns are of premium quality too. We are also getting good quality large guavas," he said. The season for exotic and imported fruit is likely to end by Sept when the festive season begins in India.
Time of India
26-06-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Prices hit sweet spot as season ends
Chennai: Mango season is winding down, with the late-blooming rumani and neelam varieties starting to appear in markets. At least 200 trucks of several varieties of the summer fruit arrive every day, flooding the market with banganapalli, totapuri, rasalu, malgova, and mallika, along with the last few harvests of sindura and imam pasand. "This year was a late start for mangoes. Good quality and quantity of mangoes started arriving in May. Summer showers boosted growth," said S Srinivasan, who heads the Chennai Fruit Commission Agents Association. "This is the best time to eat mangoes because the price is among the lowest now," he said. At the wholesale market, banganapallis sourced from Nellore, Chittoor, and Bangarupalem cost 30 to 50 a kg. In retail markets, including supermarkets, the fruit is sold for 60 a kg. Many supermarkets are holding 'mango fests', offering discounts on varieties of mangoes, most of which are priced under 70 a kg. Even cheaper are the totapuri variety, with premium quality available for 40-50 a kg in the retail markets. The price for these starts at 10 a kg in the local market. The sizes of varieties, including sindura and imam pasand, have come down, indicating the end of the season. These varieties are sold for 150 a kg at Koyambedu market. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 5 Books Warren Buffett Wants You to Read In 2025 Blinkist: Warren Buffett's Reading List Undo "We still get these fruits, but the quantity has come down," said Koyambedu fruit vendor K Jayaraman, who is also a member of the market management committee. "The occasional summer showers helped farmers. Rain adds moisture for mangoes to plump up, which improves taste and texture," he said. You Can Also Check: Chennai AQI | Weather in Chennai | Bank Holidays in Chennai | Public Holidays in Chennai Meanwhile, the early harvests of rumani and neelam have also started arriving in the market. "It is in the early stages, so quality isn't as good," said Sarvesh R, who owns a grocery store in Anna Nagar. "It will take another three weeks for good quality rumani and neelam. Until then, banganapallis will be the mango of choice," he said.
New Indian Express
28-05-2025
- Health
- New Indian Express
TN to set up centres of excellence for genetic disorder prevention in Coimbatore, Madurai
COIMBATORE: The state health department with the support of National Health Mission (NHM) is preparing to launch Centers of Excellence for the prevention and management of genetic disorders in Coimbatore and Madurai, following the footsteps of Chennai. These centers aim to facilitate genetic research and laboratory tests for conditions such as inborn errors of metabolism and immune deficiencies. Construction of the buildings and procurement of high-value machinery are currently underway, said officials and added that 50% of the work has been completed. Recognising that genetic disorders are a major cause of Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) and Under-Five Mortality Rate (U5MR), the state government has allocated Rs 8.19 crore to establish two new Centres of Excellence in Coimbatore and Madurai, said officials. "The center is already operational at the Institute of Child Health and Hospital for Children (ICH) in Chennai. Efforts to launch similar centers at government medical college hospitals in Coimbatore and Madurai are in progress," said Expert Advisor for Child Health, National Health Mission, Tamil Nadu S Srinivasan. The centers will specialise in a variety of genetic disorders, including hemoglobinopathies like thalassemia and sickle cell anemia, chromosomal disorders, spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), other neuromuscular disorders, lysosomal storage diseases (LSD), mucopolysaccharidosis (MPS), congenital adrenal hyperplasia, congenital hypothyroidism, glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G-6PD) deficiency, and cystic fibrosis, as outlined in the government order. "We have acquired expensive machinery such as Tandem Mass Spectrometry (TMS) and Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) for genetic testing, among other equipments, at the ICH in Chennai. With this laboratory, we can screen patients with genetic disorders, diagnose their conditions, and explore potential solutions. For example, inborn errors of metabolism (IEM) are rare genetic conditions that impair the body's ability to convert food into energy due to enzyme defects. Using TMS, we can screen and diagnose IEMs," Dr Srinivasan added.
