Using Israel’s Innovation and Expertise in Agriculture, Indian Farmers can grow the ‘King of all Fruits’ in the Coastal Belt. Indo-Israel Partnership shall Yield More Fruits per Acre…
Yesterday, Israel extended a warm welcome to PM Narendra Modi, the first Indian prime minister to step foot on Israeli soil in the history. Concomitantly the farmers in his native state Gujarat are all set to reap sweet ‘fruits’ of the rewarding partnership in agriculture between Israel and India. Junagarh, a small town in Gujarat, emerged as the hub of Kesar mangoes, using Israel’s orchard technology. Not only can Indian farmers grow mangoes in the coastal belt, but also produce more fruits/acre. With horticulture technology borrowed from experts in Israel, farmers can grow two new mango varieties in their homeland. These varieties are resistant to salinity and wind damages, at the same time, retain the signature sweetness of the mangoes.
As per the data produced by the state agriculture department, Gujarat produced around 12.41 lakh tones of mangoes in 2015-2016. Out of the total quantity, the Kesar variety of mangoes was estimated to be 2 lakh tons. Amreli, Gir Somnath, and Junagadh districts were leading producers of Kesar mangoes.
The lip-smacking Kesar variety grows in the foothills of Girnar Mountains. Known worldwide as Gir Kesar, these mangoes are a source of pride and joy for farmers in Junagadh. It’s the second mango variety to get a global indication (GI tag), first being the Dussheri of Uttar Pradesh.
In Talala, a center of excellence for mangoes was set up under the Indo-Israel collaboration program. The horticulture department of Gujarat has developed 200 new saplings through stalk grafting: a process in which, salt-resistant root stock of Israeli mangoes were grafted the native variety Talala Kesar. According to Director of Horticulture Department, Dr. R.A. Sherasiya, the scientists have been working on this project since last two years. The new mango varieties are likely to yield results in the field trials. Soon, the farmers will be able to cultivate mangoes in saline regions of Gujarat.
The scientists had chosen dwarf mango varieties from Israel for this experiment. Dwarf plants require less space and bear fruits early during the flowering season. Earlier, farmers planted the Kesar plants at a distance of 10 mt from one another. After grafting them with the Israeli variety, the new dwarf hybrids required less space (around 5 mt) on fields. Thus, farmers can grow more trees in limited space.
According to Mr. A.M. Karmur, Assistant Director Horticulture, the Israeli varieties showed positive outcomes on fields, especially in coastal areas. The farmers are excited to produce the same outcomes on the field.
