Bihar puts best fruit forward for Delhi

One of the best qualities of mangoes, Jardalu, known for its unique aroma and taste, and grown especially in the Bhagalpur region, have been packed off to Rashtrapati Bhavan and to the prime minister’s residence. This is a gift from Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar to President Pratibha Patil, Vice-President Hamid Ansari, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and other dignitaries. 

Four-hundred gift packets with mouth-watering mangoes produced exclusively in the orchards of Bhagalpur were dispatched for Delhi by Vikramshila Express. Two local officials of Agriculture Technology Management Agency travelled with the consignment bearing the labels — “Brand Bihar on behalf of Nitish Kumar.” The officers will eventually hand over the packets to the Bihar government authorities in New Delhi for delivery to the dignitaries.

The Jardalu variety is known for its unique flavour, luring mango connoisseurs from far and wide. Orchards in Bhagalpur were scoured meticulously to ensure that only the best quality of Jardalu mangoes find their way into the gift packets.

“More than 20 quintals of mangoes were purchased for the purpose,” said district agriculture officer Dinesh Prasad Singh.

Each of the 400 gift packets consisted of 24 pieces of mangoes, wrapped in glossy papers and laid therein properly to last for a while.

Apart from Delhi, around 100 packets will be dispatched to the state capital, too, for distribution among the VIPs, as Jardalu has emerged one of most sought after gift items ever since the practice of sending them to dignitaries began in 2007.