Ramazan spurs dates trade boom

Sajjad Khan (42), a poor dates seller of Nowshera district is all smile after he started earning maximum capital in the lucrative market of Peshawar where the commodity is being sold like a hot cake during the holy month of Ramazan.

Busy like a honeybee to fulfil the orders placed by the consumers with stretched hands, Sajjad is assisted by his two sons at Pabbi fruit market where he has sold out all the stock before Aftar.

"The interest of Rozadars in dates this year is overwhelming despite its high prices, and demands of Pakistan's Dhaki and Punjgor dates have increased manifolds due to mouthwatering taste and full of energy," he told APP while measuring these dates on hand scale as the sun was dipping down over Charat hills.

Wearing the traditional turban, the motivated fruit seller said that demands of these Pakistani dates were substantially increased from GULF states due to its unique taste and affordable prices compare to AJwa and Iranian dates. Fazal Wahab Khan, Director Agriculture Research KP said that Pakistan was the fifth greatest producer of dates in the world after Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates, he said.

Besides Dhaki dates of DIKhan, he said that about 60 types of the dates are produced only the Makran division of Balochistan. Many areas are used for the cultivation of dates, but Dhaki DI Khan in KP, Kech and Panjgur districts of Balochistan have an extraordinary popularity in this regard. APP