The first Kisan Rail from Vijayawada left for New Delhi with 220 tonnes of mangoes, loaded at Nuzvid, said Vijayawada Divisional Railway Manager (DRM) P. Srinivas.
“The mango rake was loaded after a gap of six years from Vijayawada division. It is expected to fetch the SCR(South Central Railway) ₹9.9 lakh revenue. In total, about 40 rakes will be loaded during the summer, fetching the SCR ₹3.5 crore revenue,” Mr. Srinivas said. Nuzvid is famous for its varieties of mangoes, including Banginapalli, Chinna Rasalu, Pedda Rasalu, across the country.
The Government of India has started the concept of running Kisan Rails for boosting income to the farm sector, by providing a hassle-free, safe and speedy transport services of agricultural produce. To encourage the farmers, Ministry of Food Processing Industries announced 50 percent tariff concession on transportation of notified fruits and vegetables through Kisan Rails under ‘Operations Greens – TOP to Total’.
“The Business Development Unit (BDU), Vijayawada division, conducted regular negotiations with farmers and explained to them the benefits of transportation of their produce through Kisan Rails,” said Senior Divisional Commercial Manager P. Bhaskar Reddy.
He appealed to the farmers, traders and the exporters to utilize the opportunity of Kisan Rail Special trains for safe and speedy transportation of the fruit stocks. Railways is offering special concessions on transportation of agriculture products, Mr. Reddy said.
