Agriculture Ministry Organized National Conclave on Dragon Fruit Today

Secretary of Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Government of India, presided over a National Conclave on Kamlam (Dragon Fruit) here today. The goal of this conclave was to give a boost to the area, production and productivity, marketing, and branding of Kamlam (Dragon Fruit), as well as to increase farmer income.

A technical session was also held to address issues concerning planting material, cultivation practices, post-harvest & marketing, and Kamlam research (Dragon Fruit). During the workshop, progressive farmers from Haryana, Karnataka, Gujarat, and Nagaland shared their experiences.

Additional Commissioner (Hort.) welcomed the Chief Guest, Senior Ministry Officers, State Department Officers, and Dragon Fruit Growers and Marketers from across the country. Around 200 people joined the programme virtually.

As the Chief Guest, Manoj Ahuja, Secretary, DA&FW, Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, GoI, shared his thoughts and highlighted the need to promote and develop a plan for increasing the area of Kamlam (Dragon Fruit) because the fruit has specific nutritional value and global demand.

He proposed developing a 5-year Annual Action Plan (AAP) in collaboration with states to promote overall development in cultivation, post-harvest management, marketing processing, and value addition. It was suggested that states come forward to increase the area by providing MIDH assistance for cultivation and marketing, as well as promoting processing and value addition through MoFPI.

In his speech, Dr. Abhilaksh Likhi, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Government of India, stated that this fruit should have a potential market so that growers can develop their own branding. A 5-year strategy to increase the area of Kamlam (Dragon Fruit) to 50,000 ha is also required.

He also mentioned that the Haryana State Government is providing agricultural assistance. Other states may follow the same pattern of assistance as Haryana in order to promote the fruit in the state.

Dr. Prabhat Kumar, Horticulture Commissioner, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, shared information about nutrition and the status of practices in other counties. He proposed that production be done in clusters to achieve better results. He stated that the ICAR-National Institute of Abiotic Stress Management has already conducted research on various aspects of growing this fruit in both degraded soil and rain-fed areas.

Earlier, in his introductory remarks, Priya Ranjan, Joint Secretary (Hort. ), DA&FW shared the importance of crops and also explained the assistance provided under the area expansion component of the MIDH Scheme. It was suggested to all state Horticulture Departments to include Kamlam (Dragon Fruit) in their annual action plan to increase the area.

Dr. G. Karunakaran, IIHR Bengaluru, Principal Scientists, IIHR delivered a talk on Research & Development related activities highlighting the current state of production in the country and the research work on cultivation and post-harvest practices developed by IIHR during the Technical Sessions by experts.

Dr. Sunila Chahal of Dragon Flora Farms LLP in Haryana spoke about planting material production in Kamlam, specifically about propagation for quality planting material. She also emphasized the importance of cultivating good practices. Chetan Nandan, Karnataka Progressive Farmer, shared his knowledge of potential markets for Kamlam (Dragon Fruit), as he is involved in its production and marketing.

Dr. Vijay Sachdeva, Grant Thornton Expert, discussed the status and future prospects of the fruit in the country. Hareshbhai Thakkar, Progressive Farmer, Bhuj, shared his experience in cultivating Kamlam in Kutch, while Bendangchuba, Progressive Farmer, Nagaland, discussed how to cultivate Kamlam in both hilly and plain areas of Nagaland with proper practise.