C’garh: Tribal Farmers Turn Jashpur, Fruit Basket of Chhattisgarh, by Shifting from Agriculture to Horticulture

Raipur: The farmers of the tribal-dominated Jashpur in Chhattisgarh have turned the district the ‘fruit basket’ of the state by shifting farming from agriculture to horticulture.

The farmers have gone for crop diversification on a massive scale by giving priority to horticulture and cash crops over the traditional paddy cultivation.

“The tribal farmers in Jashpur district have started growing apple, pear, strawberry, and lychee on a massive scale giving new identity to the district as the fruit basket of the state”, a senior district officer said.

The district administration, the rural education and development society, and the NABARD (National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development) have come together to provide special training and guidance to the farmers to go for horticulture to increase their income from farming, the officer said.

The district has made significant progress in the horticulture sector in the last two and half years due to the farmers’ inclination to grow different kinds of fruits in their agricultural fields instead of traditional crops like paddy, the officer said.

According to Rajesh Gupta, chairman of the rural education and development society, apple cultivation was done in 410 acres in the district in 2023.

Farmers particularly in two blocks in the district, Manore and Bagicha, are now seen growing apples on a massive scale.

Similarly, the district has made a mark in the cultivation of pears.

The pear farming is being done in around 3,500 acres particularly in areas such as Panna, Pandarapath, Kambai, Mahua, Sonkyari, Manora, Dhaipai, and Gidha in the district.

The pear production in the district has touched 1,75,000 quintals annually, Mr. Gupta said.

The district has found its market of its horticulture products in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Odisha and some other states.

Jashpur district is also known for tea cultivation.