By Neeraj Kumar
Patna, June 22: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar inaugurated the two-day Mango Festival (Amotsav) at Gyan Bhawan on Saturday, June 22. After the inauguration, he visited the mango exhibition, exploring the stalls and learning about the various mango specialties. The event includes competitions and showcases different mango varieties and mango-based products.
During the Mango Festival festival, the Chief Minister also presented symbolic cheques to agricultural producer groups and food processing units. The Chief Minister attended the event for about 20 minutes. Approximately 500 farmers displayed their mangoes at the exhibition. Notable attendees included Water Resources Minister Vijay Kumar Chaudhary, Agriculture Minister Mangal Pandey, Transport Minister Sheela Kumari, and several senior officials.
The festival features a diverse range of mango varieties such as Zardalu, Mithua, Gulab Khas, Sundar Prasad, Zarda, Bombay, Maldah, Rani Pasand, Gopalbhog, Langra, Him Sagar, Aman Ibrahimpur, Krishnabhog, Dussehri, Fazli, Sepia, Mahmood Bahar, Amrapali, and Biju.
In his address, Agriculture Minister Mangal Pandey emphasized the importance of increasing mango varieties and production. He highlighted the need for more gardens in villages to improve the environment and control climate. The current green land in Bihar is about 15 percent, and the government aims to raise it to 18 percent by promoting horticulture.
Pandey also announced that officials from the Commerce Department of the Government of India attended the festival. He noted the absence of a regional Commerce Department office in Bihar, with exports currently managed from Varanasi. The Agriculture Department plans to establish a local office in Bihar to boost fruit exports, giving a new dimension to the state’s agricultural trade.
