Watermelons to beat summer heat

D Gopi Vijayawada: Come summer, the denizens look for juices, soft drinks and ice creams to beat the Blazewada's summer heat. The nature's gift of watermelons, tender coconuts, palm fruits (Tati Munjalu) play dominant role in beating the heat in the season. Watermelons dominate summer with people eating the juicy and fleshy fruit on the streets. Tonnes of watermelons are brought on to the streets with the vendors offering them to the denizens as nature's answer to the summer heat. The vendors put up sheds at several important junctions and supply the fruit to the people, besides selling the same to retail vendors who go round on the pushcarts. The fruit contains six per cent sugar and 90 per cent water in its sweet juicy interior flesh, which is consumed by the young and old standing by the side of the pushcarts. Though the thick outer layer and seeds are thrown, there are a few takers for the seeds, which are supposed to have nutritional as well as medicinal value. The green or yellow skin keeps the flesh inside sweet enough to eat and also quenches the thirst. It is a common sight in summer for everyone to see the craving mouths walk to the vendor and enjoy the juicy pulp of the fruit. The fruit, cultivated in parts of Rayalaseema and Godavari belt in coastal region are made available to the denizens in every summer. However, as the summer heat is yet to begin, the venders are importing the fruit from the neighbouring Tamil Nadu and Karnataka states. The local fruit, which is more juicy and sweeter is expected to hit the market from the middle of April, the traders said.