Tripura CM sends 600 Kew pineapples to Bangladesh PM as goodwill gesture

Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha on July 29 sent a consignment of the state’s indigenous Kew variety of pineapples to Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman as a goodwill gesture, officials said.

A total of 100 packets containing more than 600 freshly harvested pineapples were dispatched to Dhaka through the Akhaura Integrated Checkpost near Agartala.

The gesture comes in response to the Bangladesh prime minister’s recent gift of Haribhanga mangoes to the Tripura chief minister.

“In response to the Bangladesh prime minister’s gift of delicious mangoes to our chief minister, we have sent 100 packets of Kew variety pineapples, containing over 600 fruits, to the prime minister and the people of Bangladesh through the Akhaura Integrated Checkpost,” Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Department Secretary Apurba Kumar Roy said.

Roy said the initiative was aimed at introducing Tripura’s pineapples to consumers in Bangladesh and increasing the popularity of the state’s produce in the neighbouring country.

“We want the people of Bangladesh to taste our pineapples. The state exports pineapples to foreign countries, and we want our fruit to gain popularity in the neighbouring country,” he added.

Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Department Director P B Jamatia said the consignment comprised freshly harvested Kew pineapples.

He said the harvesting season for Tripura’s Queen variety, considered the state’s premium pineapple, had already ended. As a result, the Kew variety, regarded as the second-best variety grown in the state, was sent to Bangladesh.