Say no to adulterated fruits by adopting fruit gardening

Aakanksha N Bhardwaj

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, October 3

When spurious food items are being sold in markets, having something nutritious seems a difficult task nowadays.

Horticulture Department officials said people now avoid buying and eating fruits from markets due to adulteration. Hence, the department, along with PAU, Ludhiana, has been asking residents to buy fruit saplings from government nurseries, grow them and eat healthy. The officials have been making people aware of ‘Fruit nutrition gardening’ in the state. The officials said by adopting this initiative, one could also have a clean environment along with prevention from adulteration.

Kitchen gardening has already gained momentum in the state and now, the department and the university are trying hard to aware people to stop buying fruits which were adulterated and instead, switch to ‘Fruit nutrition gardening’.

An official from the department said a person buys costly and chemical-laced fruits from the market but by adopting fruit gardening, he can get fresh and chemical-free fruits.

While explaining the importance and features of the initiative, Dr Sukhdip Singh Hundal, HDO-cum-state nodal officer of kitchen gardening, Punjab, said: “If one adopts it, fresh fruits will be available around the year and the fruits grown this way are the source of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. Also, these will be free from pesticides.”

There is an eight-page pamphlet which tells how to maintain the garden in an organic and natural way. Also, common problems/disorders in important fruits and natural solutions to them are given in the pamphlet. The fruit plants are provided at nurseries of the department and the PAU.

“There is a nursery in the Jalandhar Cantt and two in Phillaur,” Hundal said, adding that the director of the department wanted to make people aware that it was important to adopt fruit gardening.