Bhatkal: The much-anticipated three-day Jackfruit Fair kicked off in Bhatkal on Friday evening with great enthusiasm. The event features more than 70 stalls showcasing various types of jackfruits brought in from different regions of Karnataka including Mangaluru, Bantwal, Karkala, Sullia, Puttur, Gulbarga, Tumkur, Koppal, Udupi, Barkur, and others.

Known locally in the Nawayathi dialect as Fanas, jackfruit is a sweet and flavourful fruit highly popular among the people of Bhatkal. The fair showcases not only fresh jackfruit but also a wide range of innovative and healthy jackfruit-based products such as juice, chips, jalebi, kababs, manchurian, sheera, sweet, halwa, cakes, papad, sweet rotis, ice cream, and more.

In addition to jackfruit products, the fair also features stalls selling fruit saplings, organic honey, Ayurvedic items, and various homemade products. One of the main attractions is the Avocado stall, featuring the nutritious and widely-loved fruit sourced from cooler regions like Coorg and Madikeri, particularly known for its use in juices.

Despite heavy rainfall in the city, a large number of people from Bhatkal and surrounding areas turned up to attend the event. The fair will continue on Saturday and Sunday, open to the public daily from 10 AM to 9 PM.

The event is being held at Shree Raghavendra Matt Hall, located near the Maruti Nagar-Mankuli National Highway and near Mood Bhatkal Bypass, and has been jointly organized by Spandana Charitable Trust and Ranjan Indane Gas Agency.

The inauguration ceremony took place at 4:30 PM, where Shivani Shantaram, proprietor of Ranjan Indane Gas Agency, officially opened the fair by cutting a jackfruit. The event was attended by several dignitaries, including Raghavendra Naik and Ganesh Shetty from Spandana Trust, Shridhar Hebbar (President of Farmer Sangha), RK Bhat (Former president UK Journalist Association) Misbahul Haq (Rotary Club Secretary and Jali Patan Panchayat Member), Kiran Kaikini (President of Lions Club Murdeshwar), among others.