Date palms are found in abundance in desert western Rajasthan. These are now emerging as promising crops for dry areas. For the first time in the state, Bikaner’s Swami Keshavanand Rajasthan Agricultural University has exported more than 11 tonnes of fresh dates to Bangladesh. Under the ‘All India Coordinated Research Project on Dry Area Fruits’ of ICAR, the university has a collection of more than 54 varieties of dates. The exported consignment mainly included the premium ‘Halawi’ variety.
Special quality Halavi dates
Dr. Rajendra Singh Rathore of the Dates Research Center said, “This time about 11 tonnes of goods have gone to Bangladesh from the Dates Research Center. The reason for this is that the dates being produced here within the Bikaner area are of good quality. A market for dates is gradually being created not only in the country but also outside the country. Currently, the goods that have been sent to Bangladesh contain more quantity of Halawi variety of dates.” He told that the university earned about Rs 10 lakh from the export of dates to Bangladesh. He expressed hope that this will create new opportunities to increase income for date growers in the entire area.
Earning opportunity for farmers
Dr. Rajendra Babu, Vice Chancellor of Swami Kesavanand Rajasthan Agricultural University, said, “This is the first time in the history of Rajasthan that dates have been exported out of Bikaner in such quantity. Due to this, the university has received a revenue of about Rs 10 lakh. I can definitely say that dates can prove to be a boon for Rajasthan. Farmers are also growing them. At present, dates are being cultivated in about 350 hectares of area in Bikaner district.” Due to the efforts of agricultural scientists and government encouragement, date cultivation is increasing rapidly in Bikaner. It is believed that this will improve the income of farmers and the export capacity of Rajasthan will also increase.
