Tripura’s Gandacherra subdivision is witnessing a growth in the mango orchard industry as young entrepreneurs like Prabhat Chakma turn towards commercial fruit cultivation. The Dhalai district subdivision has become an important centre for mango production within the northeastern state as around 1,386 hectares are under mango cultivation, with an annual yield of 7,055 metric tons. Chakma, from one of the countless orchards situated in tribal hamlets such as Pancharatan, Tuichakma, and Narikel Kunja, turned to cultivating exotic varieties of fruit last year with an investment of INR 8 lakh. The venture has now grown so much that he is currently selling saplings of different mango varieties alongside his fruit. Among these varieties is the world’s costliest Miyakazi mango.
According to Rajib Ghosh, the Deputy Director of the Horticulture department, Dhalai is Tripura’s ‘fruit district’ and Gandacherra holds particular promise for mango cultivation. The state, which experiences an average annual rainfall of 2,200 mm over eight months, has a tropical climate that is particularly conducive to mango cultivation. This is good news for the hundreds of individuals who utilized their land to plant mango saplings and in turn become entrepreneurs. The government provides irrigation facilities, distributes insecticides, and offers technical knowledge to growers to underpin this burgeoning industry.
The Superintendant of Agriculture in Gandacherra subdivision, Chandra Kumar Reang, has said that around 125 hectares are now under mango production and the trend is gradually increasing every year. The state Agriculture Minister, Ratan Lal Nath, has commented that close to 10,357 hectares are currently under mango cultivation in the whole of Tripura, with varieties like Amrapali, Himsagar Ambika, and Arunika being grown in Gandacherra and the Gomati districts of the state.
The state Horticulture department has taken the initiative to motivate more tribal youths to participate in fruit cultivation by providing free high-yielding variety mango saplings. The cultivation of exotic varieties of mango such as Miyazaki, BARI-4, Red Palmer, and Thai Himsagar are reaping profits and encouraging growers. The Horticultural Research Centre at Nagicheera also cultivates these high-yielding varieties as well as 13 other conventional and 22 exotic varieties. Tripura’s climate is highly favorable for mango production, and with its government’s assistance, the industry will witness further expansion.
