Jaipur: The horticulture department is mulling a project to market orange from the state under the brand, 'Raj Santra'.The Kota division contributes 98% of the produce from the state which is known as 'Nagpur orange'. While the majority of the fruit produced here are Nagpur varieties, the state is exploring the possibility of introducing new variants such as Jaffa, Valencia and Daisy, according principal secretary (agriculture & horticulture) Neelkamal Darbari.Post-harvesting investment possibilities relate to projects for orange grading, waxing and packing. These will be explored at the upcoming GRAM Kota, she said .With the Kota division strong in orange production (Jhalawar district is the largest producer in the state), there is immense potential for packaging and branding operations of the locally-sourced fruit as well, according to the department.The Centre of Excellence for Citrus Fruits at Nanta, near Kota, has proved to be a boon for the region known for the production of citrus fruits.The climate is suitable for orange orchards. The centre is currently working on developing as many as 24 varieties of citrus fruits. Spread over 6.8 hectares, the primary objective of the centre is to develop citrus fruit saplings, said Darbari.Clementine, Michale Daisy, Kinnow, Nagpur Mandarin, Nagpur Seedless and Jaffa are among the varieties being developed by the centre.Plant development and orchard management of these fruits are based on Israeli technology such as mulch, drip and ridge-bed system for irrigation.Within a short span of time the Centre has grafted 50,000 plants. It has largely achieved its objective of producing disease-free and high-quality plants. It is also doing its bit to create new varieties of citrus fruits suitable for export in the global market.The centre also aims to promote mechanization of orchard operations. The development of intensive horticulture technologies, spreading awareness about post-harvest and value-addition technologies, fertigation and irrigation management techniques are its long-term goals.Director of horticulture department Vijay Pal Singh said that the project has facilities such as a primary nursery (plant grafting), a second nursery (budding), protected mother block (nurturing mother plants), and open mother block (mother plants located outside the green house), among others.

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