Dragon fruit farming catching fancy among Prayagraj region farmers
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Changes in climate and low rainfall have forced farmers towards dragon fruit cultivation as growing traditional crops based on irrigation was turning into a loss-making deal for farmers. A section of progressive farmers have opted for dragon fruit cultivation to increase their income with less water and less cost.
Chhote Lal Gautam, a farmer cultivating dragon fruit on around two acres in Sarangapur village of the district, says, "Due to weak monsoons for the last couple of years, there was a constant crisis of irrigation.
As a result, the income from traditional crops declined. After acknowledging the facts, I moved to cultivate dragon fruit in my fields and managed to increase my income significantly."
The state govt has selected 18 districts across the state under the Uttar Pradesh Agriculture Growth and Rural Enterprise Ecosystem Strengthening Project (UP-AGREES), which includes Prayagraj, Kaushambi, and Pratapgarh districts of the Prayagraj division.
Farmers in these districts are fast adopting dragon fruit cultivation. Deputy Director (Horticulture) Krishna Mohan Chaudhary says, "Currently, 16 progressive farmers are cultivating dragon fruit in Kaushambi and Prayagraj districts.
Prayagraj division has the highest number of farmers cultivating dragon fruits."
Dragon fruit farming was first launched by young farmer Ravindra Pandey in 2016 in the Kaushambi district of the division.
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Ravindra Pandey says that dragon fruit nurseries are also being prepared and sent from here to other districts of the state, which has increased his income apart from the crop. The fruit is a tropical fruit that got the name dragon fruit because of its bright magenta-coloured spikes. This miraculous fruit, which entered India from Mexico and the US, is called Pitaya in some places and Kamalam in others.
Dragon fruit, with a mildly sweet and crunchy taste, has been called a superfood.
It is proving to be a boon in the prevention of diseases like diabetes, heart disease, and arthritis.
The state govt is providing financial assistance to farmers through Integrated Horticulture Development Mission to promote dragon fruit farming. Chaudhary, meanwhile, said that farmers are being given a 40% subsidy in form of financial assistance. Apart from this, a state grant of Rs 30,000 per hectare is also being given. Dragon fruit grower CL Gautam says that he received financial assistance of Rs 2.78 lakh per hectare from the govt.
This has increased the interest of farmers in dragon fruit farming.
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