The bard of Bengal, Rabindranath Tagore, was passionate about mangoes and had, in this context, penned many poems, including Aamer Manjari and a poem titled Unyielding: “When I called you in your garden/Mango blooms were rich in fragrance.” Jasmit Singh Arora shares the same passion for the fruit for its regrowth and regeneration in the proliferation of mango orchards all across Bengal and India. He was among the panel of speakers at the environmental seminar on World Environment Day at Kolkata’s National Library on 5 June. He spoke about his new innovative project in connection with his collection of mango guthlis, the seeds of the mango fruit, which, according to Jasmit, require to be washed and sun-dried for 2-3 days to become eligible to be handed over to him.

The most fruitful aspect of this rare initiative is that any mango seed from any part of India need not be discarded and thrown into the garbage can but can be recycled through this new venture and turned into a splendid mango tree. Jasmit Singh Arora is almost like John Appleseed, who turned the United States of America into an apple orchard. He aims to donate one lakh mango trees to the farmers all over West Bengal, but he aims to reach the one crore target in the coming years.

“Most farmers are engaged in paddy farming. With all the usage of chemical fertilisers and excess use of water, they are only able to earn twenty thousand rupees per acre each year. This is resulting in the poor condition of the soil and their personal health. Gram Samriddhi Foundation conducts organic farming training and promotes fruit tree plantations among the farmers. The mango tree is a unique tree that promotes biodiversity across farming fields. Therefore, it becomes very important and necessary for all the farmers to have mango trees,” says Arora.

The entire process involves germination, grafting with the local mango breeds like Himsagar and Golapkhas, and donating these plants to the farmers. The germination rate of mango seeds is very low, and to this end, he requires 10 lakh mango seeds. “If we plant a hundred seeds, only ten will sprout. I regularly contact different schools, housing societies, NGOs, social clubs, hotels, caterers and mango juice sellers to collect mango seeds,” he says. Mango trees promote sustainable biodiversity by giving shelter to many kinds of birds, like cuckoos, and different insects. These birds promote cross-pollination among farmlands.

With this donation, one is creating a legacy by planting a tree bearing fruit for the next generation. Mango trees provide ample amounts of oxygen to clear pollution and provide an eco-friendly environment. The king of fruits is endowed with great medicinal properties. For the past many years, huge numbers of mango trees have been cut, thus causing massive destruction of biodiversity all across India.

Jasmit Singh Arora, under the banner of the Gram Samriddhi Foundation, has been working with the farmers of West Bengal in such districts as Bankura, Purulia, Birbhum and Sunderbans for many years. Farmers are provided with organic farm training. They are made to realise the health hazards faced by consumers, farmers, and the environment, including the soil in general, owing to the excessive use of health-harming fertilisers. Once they are ready, all the grafted plants will be donated to these marginal farmers.

“India, in its 80 per cent area, produces five hundred varieties of mango. If we are able to grow good-quality local breeds, a huge export market across the US, Europe and Australia is awaiting,” claims Arora.

“On the environmental performance index, India stands at the 176th position out of 180 countries. The per-person tree population in India is also a staggeringly low figure compared to many other countries, where there are more than 10,000 trees per person. So we need to gear up and average out our per-tree population to at least 400 by planting 10 trees by each person every year,” he adds.

To mitigate poverty and create more financial earnings, farmers are enlightened about the benefits of fruit tree cultivation vis-à-vis paddy farming. Jasmit is overwhelmed by the positive response he received for his mango guthli collection drive from so many schools and other environmentally friendly institutions, as well as individual members of the public in Kolkata, West Bengal and all across India. He even received calls from Italy and other European countries. Those interested in contacting Jasmit Singh Arora can call him at 9831459390.

The writer is an independent contributor