AGARTALA, April 25: The Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) will support a Rs 132.62-crore project to promote Tripura’s pineapple globally, an official said on Friday.
The Tripura government had submitted a proposal to the ministry to explore international markets for the queen variety of pineapple, which was declared the state fruit by then President Ram Nath Kovind in 2018.
The Northeastern state currently has 12,095 hectares under pineapple cultivation, producing around 1,77,433 tonnes of the fruit annually.
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“Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Minister Ratan Lal Nath held a virtual meeting with DoNER Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Thursday, along with senior officials. In the meeting, our minister highlighted the unique taste, flavour and nutritional value of the pineapple, which makes it highly marketable globally,” said Phani Bhusan Jamatia, director of the Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Department.
He noted that the organically grown pineapples of Tripura have strong potential in global markets, given the rising demand for healthy and chemical-free produce.
Jamatia added that Scindia showed keen interest in promoting Tripura’s pineapples and emphasised the importance of year-round production and attractive packaging to boost exports.
“In Tripura, the queen variety of pineapple is harvested over a three-month window from May. We need to improve processing and packaging to extend shelf life. Currently, one integrated packaging facility is operational in Agartala, and another is expected to be set up in Nalakata, North Tripura, within a month,” he said.
Emphasising the need for proper preservation techniques, Jamatia said pineapples, despite being organically grown, are highly perishable and tend to spoil within 6 to 8 days.
“We may need to explore the use of safe hormonal treatments to extend freshness,” he said.
The Union minister also advocated for the use of modern technologies such as drones, artificial intelligence (AI), and IT tools in pineapple cultivation to ensure better surveillance, maintenance and overall quality, which would ultimately help farmers fetch better prices in international markets. (PTI)
