Mysuru celebrates banana diversity: Two-day Banana Festival begins

Visitors at the Banana Festival at Nanjaraja Bahadur Choultry in Mysuru on Saturday.

A vibrant celebration of banana diversity, cultural heritage, conservation and entrepreneurial opportunities began on Saturday at Nanjaraja Bahadur Choultry, Mysuru, with the inauguration of a two-day Banana Festival. More than 200 rare, indigenous and exotic banana varieties are being showcased, bringing together farmers, banana conservationists, researchers, entrepreneurs and nature enthusiasts from different parts of the country.

The festival is organised by Sahaja Samrudha in collaboration with the Department of Horticulture, Mysuru, ICAR–JSS Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Suttur, Karnataka State Agricultural Produce Processing and Export Corporation Limited (KAPPEC), and Abhay Naturals.

Giridhar Parvatham, director of CSIR–CFTRI, Mysuru, who inaugurated the festival, said, “Festivals showcasing agricultural diversity play an important role in introducing the richness of biodiversity to the public and creating awareness about traditional foods. CSIR–CFTRI is also working on research and value addition of banana-based products through its incubation centre.”

On the occasion, Mr. Parvatham launched the ‘Banana Bharat’ mobile application, developed by Abhay Naturals. The app aims to bring information about different banana varieties from across India onto a single digital platform, making it easily accessible to farmers, researchers, conservationists and consumers.

Roopashree K. N., joint director, Department of Horticulture, Mysuru, who was the chief guest, appreciated the initiative and said, “This festival has helped me understand the incredible diversity of banana varieties. Such festivals provide an excellent platform to introduce indigenous banana varieties to the public and create market opportunities for them.”

Umesh H. Hebbar, Senior Scientist and Head of the Department of Food Technology at CSIR–CFTRI, emphasised the importance of exploring the potential of different parts of the banana plant.

Ravishankar, a banana diversity conservationist from Ponnampet, Kodagu, encouraged parents to bring their children to such festivals. He emphasised the importance of introducing children to agricultural heritage and biodiversity from an early age.

G. Krishna Prasad, director of Sahaja Samrudha, emphasised that bananas should not be viewed merely as a fruit and that greater attention must be given to the diverse uses and potential of every part of the plant. The programme was compered by Keshava Murthy.

On the occasion, the ‘Banana Saviour Award’ was presented to Daya Prasad D.S. of Vanasiri Farm, Sullia Taluk, Dakshina Kannada district, in recognition of his outstanding contribution to conserving indigenous banana diversity. He has conserved more than 400 banana varieties and brought around 100 of them for display at the festival.

Ravishankar from Ponnampet, Kodagu, has brought several rare banana varieties for display and sale. Prasad Rama Hegade from Sirsi, a recipient of the National Plant Genome Saviour Farmer Recognition, is showcasing several rare varieties.

One of the major attractions of the festival is the exhibition of more than 200 rare, indigenous and exotic banana varieties collected from different parts of the country.

Traditional varieties such as Nanjangud Rasabale, Nendran, Elakki Bale, Kamalapur Red Banana, Karpuravalli, Poovan, Chandra Bale, Madarangi, Kallu Bale, Nati Bale, Boodu Bale, Sugandhi, Sakkare Bale, Huli Bale and Chukke Bale are among those showcased.

Rare and distinctive varieties such as Zanzibar Giant, 1000 Fingers, Java Blue, Red King, Namaste Bale, Kadu Bale, Sahasra Bale, Multicoloured Banana and Finger Banana are also attracting visitors. Fresh traditional bananas and banana suckers of several indigenous varieties are available for sale.