Due to dearth of preservation and value addition facility, large quantity of ripe jackfruits produced in tribal pockets of south Odisha are getting wasted every year.
Tribal organisations like MITA and Ganjam Zilla Adivasi Manch (GZAM) have demanded that the government start preservation and value addition process for ripe jackfruits in south Odisha.
According to MITA secretary Jagabandhu Sabar, large quantity of jackfruits is produced in tribal pockets of Ganjam, Gajapati, Kandhamal and Rayagada districts. At start of the fruit-bearing season, traders from north India especially from Uttar Pradesh reach the tribal and pay in advance to take the unripe jackfruits that are used as vegetables.
After the unripe jackfruits get sold, the remaining jackfruits ripen on trees. Jackfruits have heavy demand during festivals of Odisha like ‘Savitri Vrat’ and ‘Raja’. However, the demand falls after these festivals. Tribal leader and GZAM convenor Kailash Jani alleged that of the jackfruits ripening on trees in tribal pockets, only 20 per cent reach the market. The rest is wasted as the tribals do not consume all the fruits.
These tribal organisations and social activists, like Mangaraj Panda, feel pulp of ripe jackfruits can also be used to produce preserved value added products like jelly and dried flakes.
“Technology is the same like that used for mango pulp and is available with Odisha University of Agriculture and Technology (OUAT) and Indian Council for Agricultural Research (ACAR),” said Mr Panda.
A large quantity of ripe jackfruits are getting wasted every year
