Though the Muslim holy month of fasting (Ramadhan) begun, pickles, fruits and dry fruits business picks up in Kashmir.The markets in the valley especially in the summer capitals’ commercial hub, Lal Chowk remain flooded with fresh fruits as well as dry fruits, dates and pickles during the entire month of the fasting.Various types of pickles are available in the market and people buy a new variety of pickle every day.An elderly told KNS that the demand of the pickles increases manifold because this Kashmiri item is very old and it has been consumed for years and every one in Kashmir likes it.Gulam Qadir Sunoo, a pickle whole seller from Habba Kadal said that during the month Ramadan his business increases. “All kinds of pickles are available with us like the one's made out of fish, chicken and we have almost 90 kinds of pickles with us."
Collection of dates
Traditionally, Muslims in valley and elsewhere end their fast with dates and water as dates are an immediate source of energy and potassium. People of valley have started making their preparations to buy items like dates to end their fast at sunset known as ‘Iftaar time’ in Ramadan. Dates are available at almost every grocery store particularly in the month of Ramadan and all other shopkeepers too possess it. Most of the street vendors switch this month to dates selling. It remains in demand for the whole month.Shabir Ahmad, a local shopkeeper at Koker Bazaar in the alleys of commercial hub of Lal Chowk said, “These days people buy dates and mostly they buy wet dates and that is why we have kept the wet dates more to fulfil the demand of consumers. We have a variety of dates ranging from Rs 80 to 1200 per kilogram.”Another shopkeeper from the same market believes people like imported dates particularly Saudi dates. “People ask for the brand dates of Saudi Arabia especially Ajwah, Mabro etc and all these qualities are available in the market. We bought all the varieties from Mumbai which is the hub of an International trade,” says Fayaz Ahmad, a grocery store.He said that dates come in packaging which remain in demand throughout the holy month of Ramadan. This time, we have bought different varieties to fulfill the demand of customers.
Fruits
Despite the increase in prices of fruits by vendors and shopkeepers in the market, people in this summer capital switch over to fruits than consuming drinks during the ongoing holy month of Ramadan.Most of the people said they consume fruits in this holy month to break their fast along with dates and water.“It is our routine in every Ramadan to consume fruits than every other stuff like drinks in this holy month. We buy a dozen of bananas everyday to quest the hunger while breaking the fast as it is an important source of energy filled with nutritional punch and potassium,” Muntazir Jabeen, a local told KNS .People across the valley also buy fruits to earn rewards by delivering it to mosques which is then distributed equally to the people who come ahead of the Iftaar time in the mosque to end their fast.
“Besides a large quantity of dates, we receive variety of fruits from the people in the evening which we then distribute equally amongst those who are present in the mosque ahead of the Iftaar time,” said Abdul Ahad Kaloo, President of Masjid Usmaan-e-Gani at Chattabal in old city. The fruit vendors and shopkeepers said the fruits remain much in demand during the holy month.The shopkeepers and dealers said that they were already expected the sales of cold drinks would go down with the onset of holy month of Ramadan. “This year, Ramadan fall in summer and the sales of drinks remain almost negligible during the day hours,” Rafi Mohd Gagloo, a shopkeeper at Gole Market Karan Nagar. Pertinently, Ramadan, one of the five pillars of Islam, is the holiest month of the Islamic calendar, when Muslims must abstain from all eatables including water from dawn to dusk -- a discipline believed to better their souls. (KNS)