The 'Noorjahan' mango, cultivated in Madhya Pradesh's Alirajpur district, is fetching a higher price this year thanks to the good yield and sheer size of the fruit compared with last year.

The 'Noorjahan' mango is priced at Rs 500 to Rs 1,000 apiece this season, a farmer said on Sunday, adding unlike the last year, the yield of this variety of mangoes has been good this time due to favourable weather conditions.

Locals claim 'Noorjahan' mangoes are of Afghan origin and cultivated only in the Katthiwada region of Alirajpur district adjacent to the Gujarat border, approximately 250 km from Indore.

"The three Noojahan mango trees in my orchard have produced 250 mangoes. The fruit has been priced between Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 per piece. Bookings have already been done for these mangoes," Shivraj Singh Jadhav, a mango cultivator from Katthiwada, told PTI.

He said people who have booked 'Noorjahan' mangoes in advance include fruit lovers from Madhya Pradesh as well as neighbouring Gujarat.

"This time the weight of a Noorjahan mango is going to be between 2 kg to 3.5 kg," Jadhav added.

Ishaq Mansoori, an expert in cultivating 'Noorjahan' mangoes in Katthiwada, said, "This time the crop of this variety has been good but the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the business".

He said 'Noorjahan' trees could not flower properly due to unfavourable climatic conditions in 2020.

"In 2019, one mango of this variety weighed around 2.75 kg at an average and buyers paid as high as Rs 1,200 apiece for it," he added.

The 'Noorjahan' variety produces fruits towards the beginning of June. These trees start flowering in January-February. A 'Noorjahan' mango can grow up to a foot long and its kernels weigh between 150 to 200 grams, local cultivators claimed.