Pulivendula, Anantapur Farmers To Export Bananas Through India's First Fruit Train

Pulivendula, Anantapur Farmers To Export Bananas Through India's First Fruit Train

The first of its kind 'fruit train' in the country was flagged off from Tadipatri Railway Station in Anantapur district in Andhra Pradesh on Thursday afternoon.  

A train from the Guntakal Division was loaded with bananas, for export to Middle East countries, in a Refrigerated (Reefer) Container train from Tadipatri.

Loading of 25 rakes is planned in next 3 months from this area and each rake is said to fetch Rs 25 lakhs to Railways and also help farmers in Andhra Pradesh export their produce, the Ministry of Railways said, in a tweet.

Farmers from Putlur region in Anantapur and Pulivendula in Kadapa district are exporting ‘Green Cavendish’ bananas under the brand name ‘Happy Bananas’ to many international markets through this special fruit train.

First time Guntakal Division has loaded Bananas, for export to middle east countries, in a Refrigerated (Reefer) Container train from Tadipatri. Loading of 25 rakes is planned in next 3 months from this area and each rake will fetch Rs 25 lakhs to Railways. pic.twitter.com/iptEf18dgd

— Ministry of Railways (@RailMinIndia) February 2, 2020

As per reports in The Hindu, there is a potential to send 10,000 MT of fruits from Tadipatri after sourcing them from Anantapur and Kadapa districts.

The government was targeting exports of 30,000 MT of fruits from all over Andhra Pradesh.

It is collaborating with few corporate companies and with the local farmers to enhance the productivity, post-harvest treatment and packing, providing market linkage and ensuring higher prices with a regular increase in income year-on-year.

A load of 980 tonnes of locally grown bananas was flagged off to the Jawaharlal Nehru Port in Mumbai, from where the consignment will be exported to Iran.

Normally 150 trucks with temperature-controlled containers would have been required to send a consignment of this size by road covering over 900 km before they are loaded onto ships.

But now with this fruit train it helps in saving both time and fuel and ensures the freshness of the produce till it reaches the market.