Ramesh Awasthi hosts India’s biggest Mango Festival

Celebrating Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, Ramesh Awasthi, chairman at National Media Club (NMC) hosted India's biggest Mango Festival in New Delhi for the lovers of the ‘King of Fruits’. The mango festival and exhibition were held at Western Court Annexe, Janpath which kicked off with great enthusiasm. There were around 350 different varieties of mangoes that were on display.

Shri Parshottam Rupala, union minister for animal husbandry, dairy and fisheries, inaugurated the event. He said: "This Mango Festival is one of its kind which is being hosted every year by Ramesh Awasthi with great enthusiasm. It not only brings so many varieties of mangoes to one place but also opens doors to International buyers."

Shri Mahendra Nath Pandey, union minister of Heavy Industries, who was the guest of honour at the event congratulated Ramesh Awasthi for organising the Mango Festival and also said that it is commendable to give such a big platform to the farmers in an agricultural country. He also awarded 'Modi Mango' with the title of best mango at the festival as it was the centre of attraction among all guests.

Awasthi said "It has been more than a decade of the Mango Festival being held with so much fervour and gaiety. We are thrilled with the response of the dignitaries who came to attend this. It inspires us to bring more mangoes on the table from different places and connect with the farmers of rural areas so that it can pave the way for their economic sustainability."

The festival also witnessed the presence of Shri Shashi Tharoor, MP, Thiruvananthapuram Kerala and former union minister who visited the Mango Festival. Talking to the media, he said: "Since I am a vegetarian, I enjoyed different varieties of mangoes at this Mango Festival."

India is the world's biggest producer of mangoes with around 1,100 varieties of fruit grown in different regions of the country. The festival had unique varieties of mangoes and offered the opportunity to witness variants of mangoes such as langda, chausa, maldah, amrapali, neeleshwari, sikri, royal SP, neelam, papitiyo, kesar, sensation, nazuk badab, fazli, tommy atkins, and alphonso. Mango named 'Modi Mango' also caught the attention of the visitors.

Speaking at the event, Sachin Awasthi, president, NMC said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is constantly working for the well-being of the farmers and the productivity of farming. The current vision of the Indian Government is to accelerate a transformation in the farming sector with an ambition to empower farmers. The New India envisioned by Govt. runs on the motto of 'Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, and Sabka Vishwas' and farmer welfare is an integral part of it.

He added that the festival also helps in promoting the export of mangoes and motivates farmers from different places of the country to contribute their part in the promotion of exports. The main aim of this festival is to educate people about the different varieties of mangoes produced in India and to promote the export of the most important and widely cultivated fruit in the tropical world.

Modi Mango steals the show

Modi Mango became a topic of discussion and cynosure in the NMC India Mango Festival. Among plenty of varieties, the Modi Mango was the one present that caught the attention of many visitors which proves the popularity of Prime Minister Narendra Modi amongst everyone, People were seen taking a selfie with Modi Mango, while many kept admiring its texture, weight, colour, and its size as it was different from other mangoes. Several were seen waiting in line for taking a photo with it.

This festival was also attended by several other dignitaries from different Government sectors along with renowned social activists, media persons, and senior law officers. Awasthi honoured the visiting guests and dignitaries with a memento, during which he also told that the purpose of the Mango Festival is not only to make the people aware of the varieties of Mangoes but also to let the general public know how hard the farmers of our country work.

Prior to this, Awasthi also organised a Mango Festival at a grand level in his hometown- Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh. The event was organised at a big level and witnessed the presence of several VVIPs including some notable ministers of Yogi Adityanath Government like Baby Rani Maurya (former governor of Uttarakhand and current minister in the Yogi Adityanath Cabinet). Sanjay Singh Gangwar, Pratibha Shukla and several other political personalities and dignitaries of Kanpur from all fields also attended the festival.