Agartala: In a significant push to globalise Tripura’s world-renowned Queen Pineapple, the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), Government of India, has announced a major initiative with a financial allocation of Rs 132.62 crore.
In 2015, the Queen pineapple received the Geographical Indication (GI) tag, and on June 7, 2018, President of India Ram Nath Kovind declared the Queen variety of pineapple as the state fruit of Tripura, citing that this variety connects the state with world trade.
Speaking with Business North East (BNE), Rajib Ghosh, Head of the State Research Centre for Horticulture, said the project aims to transform the GI-tagged Queen Pineapple into an international brand, benefiting both pineapple growers and the state's bamboo producers.
He said that an important meeting regarding the initiative was held on Thursday, attended by Tripura's Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Ratan Lal Nath, who was joined virtually by Union DoNER Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia.
Ghosh gave a comprehensive overview of the project's scope through a PowerPoint presentation, which garnered positive feedback from Union Minister Scindia.
“A copy of the comprehensive proposal has already been submitted to the DoNER Ministry, which has now given the green light for its implementation. The Rs 132.62 crore project highlights farmers engaged in Queen and Kew pineapple cultivation. Plans include packaging the fruit to meet international standards and using eco-friendly bamboo boxes for export—offering a dual advantage of increased income for both pineapple cultivators and bamboo artisans,” said Ghosh.
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He informed that in the meeting highlighting the role of innovation, Union Minister Scindia emphasised the integration of modern technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), drones, real-time monitoring, and market intelligence to boost organic pineapple farming.
According to the official, the Union Minister also underlined international private players, the state government, and the Department of Horticulture will jointly manage the project, which will be market-driven. Scindia expressed keen interest in visiting Tripura, meeting with pineapple growers, and inspecting the cultivation fields. He lauded the quality of the project presentation and assured support in fast-tracking the final approval process.
"State Agriculture Minister Ratan Lal Nath will visit Delhi shortly to extend a formal invitation to the Union Minister and expedite administrative procedures," said the official.
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