'Modi mango' hits shelves in India
“I had kept the first fruits of the Modi mango variety solely for the Prime Minister but I do not have a medium to send them to him,” said Mr. Kalimullah, a Padma Shri awardee famous for growing scores of mango varieties and naming them after celebrities.
“It is my wish that I can offer him the king of fruits myself and I am confident that he will love it,” Mr. Kalimullah said, adding that it would be an honour if the Prime Minister finds the taste of the fruit to his liking.
The noted mango grower, who has become an institution in his own right having a particular tree bearing fruits of 300 different varieties, said he has prepared five saplings of ‘Modi mango’ and wants to present them to the Prime Minister for planting in his home state Gujarat.
“I want the variety to grow in Gujarat,” he said, adding that it is a cross between Kolkata’s Husn-e-Aara and Lucknow’s Dussehri.
Mr. Kalimullah, a Class VII drop out who has earned recognition far and wide for his innovations, said he finds it surprising that dignitaries coming to Lucknow find time to visit his orchards.
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