London fancies Pathankot ‘litchi’

GS Paul

Amritsar, June 29

For the first time, the ‘litchi’ grown on Pathankot’s soil will be available in the London market.

A consignment of 10 quintals of litchi has been exported through Amritsar’s cargo facility at Sri Guru Ram Dass Jee International Airport here.

The Punjab Horticulture Department in collaboration with the Centre-sponsored Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), has undertaken this joint initiative.

Shailender Kaur, Director Horticulture, Punjab, said that the state government acted as a “bridge” between the litchi producers and the exporters offering them a start-up that opens global avenues for marketing and selling the horticulture produce overseas.

“Initially, the idea of sending the small quantity was just to spread a message overseas that the Pathankot litchi is the finest in quality and taste,” she said.

It is a part of the Punjab Government’s broader strategy to diversify agricultural practices and encourage farmers to adopt horticultural crops over traditional water-guzzling paddy and wheat cultivation.

“This shift is not only expected to increase farmers’’ income but also address the critical issue of rapidly declining groundwater in the region. The move to export litchis is a key step towards achieving this goal. After this, other bumper crop like kinnow and guava too could be exported on the same lines,” she said.

Pathankot is ideal for litchi cultivation due to its sub-mountainous terrain, high humidity and favourable soil conditions. It contributes around 60 per cent of the state’’s litchi production. Around 48 trees are grown on one acre and each tree, according to its age, yields approximately 80-100 kg of litchi. Normally, the harvesting time of litchi is from June 10 to July 10.

Dr Jatinder Kumar, Horticulture Officer-cum-state nodal officer (litchi project), said that APEDA, under the guidance of its chairperson Abhishek Dev and Punjab’s Chief Secretary KAP Sinha, had engaged the buyers of litchi in London and it will fetch five times the rate available in India.

“Since it is the first export project on an experimental basis, it will be a ‘no profit, no loss’ venture for the litchi producers. Once its market is established in London, it will multiply their income. The litchi, which is being sold for Rs 100 per kg here, will be sold for nothing less than Rs 500 per kg in London,” he said.

In Punjab, mainly two varieties of litchi named Dehradun and Calcutta are grown in few districts, including Pathankot, Gurdaspur, Nawashahr, Hoshiarpur and Ropar, covering nearly 3,900 hectares.

“Out of this, about 2,200 hectares is dedicated to litchi production only in Pathankot belt. That’s why special efforts were being made to increase the profitability for litchi farmers by enhancing production and sales to foreign shores. Already, the Pathankot litchi was being dispatched to domestic markets in New Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Mumbai,” Dr Jatinder Kumar said.