Ramganjmandi, near Kotah in Rajasthan, is the biggest market in the country for coriander with a daily turnover put at several crores of rupees. ``The mandi (market) is becoming more known for the quality of coriander apart from the large volume turnover,'' says Nirmal Patni of Sardarmal & Sons, a leading trader in the business for over fifty years.

``Traders, who had stored large quantities of coriander last year expecting sharp price appreciation have lost heavily this year due to the glut in the market,'' Patni said.

Last year the traders invested at the rate of Rs 1400 per bag but now priceshave fallen to Rs 750 per bag, he said.

The prices at Ramganjmandi currently range between Rs 13 and Rs 50 per kg depending upon the quality. Last year the lowest quote was Rs 18 per kg as against this year's Rs 13.

Traders expect a further slump in prices as stocks stored last year coupled with fresh arrivals will lead to an oversupply situation. Badami dhania ranges between Rs 16 and Rs 22 per kg as compared with the previous year's Rs 18-Rs 27 per kg.

In coriander also there are different varieties with the ``small dhania'' being sold all over the country. Its only Gujarat that``big dhania'' is sold.

Green dhania, the best variety, range between Rs 20 and Rs 50 per kg.

This year its production has been low due to unseasonal rains in the Kotah region.

A peculiar phenomenon in the price behaviour this year, which is worth noting, is that in March last year, coriander (the widely used variety) was available at Rs 18 per kg as against Rs 16 per kg this year, but in April last year, the price jumpedto Rs 27 per kg as against Rs 13 per kg this month.

As the climate suits the growers in Ramganjmandi area it takes about three months for the crop to be fully grown and the requirement for water is minimal thus many farmers are lured into cultivating coriander in large scale.

Apart from Ramganjmandi, coriander is also sown in the nearby areas such as Patan, Bhawanimandi, Baran and Kotah. In the neighbouring state, Madhya Pradesh too, coriander is sown in large areas, specially in Guna region that covers Bina, Kumraj and Neemuch. Guna is a big mandi for coriander but Ramanjmandi is the prominent among the lot and sets the price trend that is followed by other markets in the country, Patni said.

This year the crop had begun to reach Ramganjmandi around February 15.But in Ramganjmandi the arrivals of coriander are almost throughout the year with the number of bags falling to around 1,000 a day.

Coriander is also exported from Guna as in Ramganjmandi sales tax is high at 6 per cent as against nil inMadhya Pradesh.