Purulia, Jhargram districts, along with Bankura, to become major alphonso hubs

Kolkata, Sep 2: Purulia and Jhargram districts will become major hubs for alphonso mangoes in the near future. Already in Bankura district 2,500 alphonso saplings have been planted. The fruits from some of these trees were brought to the mango festival held at Kolkata’s City Centre I recently, where they turned out to be a huge hit. The State Paschimanchal Unnayan Affairs Department will spend Rs 32 lakh to grow this variety of mango. This will also help the local people to become self-reliant, as the work will be done by members of Self-Help Groups (SHGs) under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scheme. The department, along with the district administration, will train the SHG members for three years about the maintenance of the gardens. The District Magistrates of Purulia and Jhargram will be given 5,000 saplings, which will be grown in four gardens in Purulia and seven gardens in Jhargram. According to the Paschimanchal Unnayan Affairs Minister, agricultural scientists from Maharashtra, which is the original alphonso-growing region, have given strong recommendations in favour of growing alphonso in the districts of Bankura, Purulia and Jhargram. It may be mentioned that the lepers of Bankura who are fully cured have been growing vegetables and fruits under MGNREGA to earn their l ivelihood. It may be mentioned that the lepers of Bankura who are fully cured have been growing vegetables and fruits under MGNREGA to earn their livelihood. UNI