Haryana: INDO-ISRAEL Centre produces 'modified mangoes' with better flavours, higher yield

Speaking about the characteristics of these modified mango varieties, Dr. SPS Solanki said that one mango can weigh up to 500 gms at its best. "The yields these plants can produce are among the highest yielding plants, with one fruit giving great quality and quantity in the yield," the researcher said.

Kurukshetra:The researchers at the Indo-Israel Center of Excellence here have developed several new varieties of mangoes with better flavor, taste, color, and yielding capacity. Among around 30 different types of mango varieties being developed here, 12 varieties show stark differences compared to the others, informed Dr. Billu Yadav, Director of Indo Israel Center of Excellence.

Totapuri, Chausa, Langra, Kesar, Ambika, Pusa, Arunima, Dussehra, Mallika, and Doodh Peda among others are some of the varieties that have been modified. In the modified species, one plant has the capacity to produce over 120 quintals to 200 quintals of mangoes in one yield. One plant of this variety is sold for Rs 100.

The director also informed that the farmers who buy the saplings from the center in Kurukshetra get a 50 percent subsidy, provided they register themselves with the Horticulture Department. Farmers from across the country including Delhi, Rajasthan, UP, Punjab, and Haryana have been buying mango saplings from the headquarters in Kurukshetra, he said. "The mango varieties we have developed so far are receiving a good response. There are some more varieties we are trying to experiment with currently. We hope that this will be one of the best mangoes in India in the times to come," he added.

Speaking about the characteristics of these modified mango varieties, Dr. SPS Solanki -- another researcher at the institute -- said that one mango can weigh up to 500 gms at its best. "The yields these plants can produce are among the highest yielding plants, with one fruit giving great quality and quantity in the yield. If the farmers manage the saplings and plantations properly, a mango can weigh up to five hundred grams, consequently fetching much higher prices than the usual mango varieties in the market. These saplings can therefore be quite advantageous for the farmers," Dr. Solanki said.

"Usually, the ordinary varieties of mangoes are sold in the market at the rate of one hundred and fifty rupees per kg. But the prices of mangoes of the modified variety range from Rs 200 to 300 in the market. In the coming times, it is expected that the farmers who plant the modified varieties of saplings purchased from here will also be able to sell abroad. It can be quite profitable to these farmers since their quality is much better than all other varieties," Dr. Solanki added.

The Indo Israel Center of Excellence is the only institute in the country that has experimented with mango varieties. Farmers from some of the states are already taking advantage of the research, while the researchers here hope to propagate its cultivation and sale in other parts of the country as well as the world.