‘Brand Kashi’ fruits, veggies in Europe, Gulf; Narendra Modi’s constituency to become export hub soon

Narendra Modi’s constituency Varanasi may soon become a hub of fruit and vegetable exports. The department of commerce has announced that the farmers will be trained to grow the export quality product and will be made aware of the standards followed in European countries, Gulf countries and Singapore. The fruit and vegetable grown in Varanasi will be branded as Banaras Brand Kashi or Brand Kashi. The export program will be covered under the agriculture exports policy, which is aimed to enable farmers to get benefits of export opportunities in overseas markets. The policy aims to double India’s share in world agri exports by integrating with the global value chain at the earliest.

Netherland, USA, Japan and UAE are among the countries where fruits grown in India are largely exported. However, where overall Indian exports grew by 8 per cent year-on-year in 2018-19, exports of fruits contracted by over 12 per cent, according to the Ministry of Commerce. Similarly, the exports of vegetables also contracted by 0.3 per cent in the previous financial year. 

The contraction in exports of fruits and vegetables in India also demands a boost in the production of fruits and vegetables, complying to a certain standard. Meanwhile, the agriculture minister has also urged the farmers to make farming profitable and not to depend on subsidies. 

To make Varanasi a hub for fruits and vegetable exports, the government will roll the plan in two phases. In the first phase, training will be given and basic infrastructure for packaging of fruits and vegetables will be developed in the districts and farmers will be motivated to grow fruits and vegetables complying to export standards. In the second phase, the focus will be to add facilities to the already present infrastructure to promote the export of fruits and vegetables grown. There is also a plan for developing an agro-processing park near the airport. Vegetables such as cauliflower, tomatoes, chilies, peas, brinjals, cabbage and beans are being grown on a large scale in the region and are being exported to the Gulf countries.