AP CM inaugurates Vapour Heat Treatment plant in Tirupati

Tirupati, Jun 23 (UNI) Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy inaugurated India's second and south India's first Integrated Pack House and Vapour Heat Treatment (VHT) plant, worth Rs 13.35 crore, in the temple town here today.

The plant operation and maintenance of the facility is being handed over to experienced people under public-private partnership (PPP). The system would benefit farmers of the mango rich Chittoor and Kadapa district to export 'Benishan' variety of mangoes, called as 'Banganapalle' in the desi market, to Japan.

The facility, which has the capacity of handling three tonnes of mangoes per hour, would do de-sapping, pre-cooling, cleaning, hot water washing, sorting, grading, packing, vapour heat treatment, cold store and ripening of the fruit also.

The VHT facility was provided alone to undertake quarantine treatment for fruit exports, which require fruit fly control through VHT that is certified by Japanese quarantine inspector deputy by Government of Japan for the purpose.

The plan was set up by the APEDA, a nodal agency working under the purview of the Union Ministry of Commerce and Industries. The Agency has sunk into the project Rs 9.70 crores. The plan would provide cool chain linkage from the farmers orchards to the market to retain quality.

Besides farmers, who will be given the top priority, the facility could also be used by others related like farmers associations, cooperatives exporters and importers and private sector on use and pay basis.

In the house, modern ripening facility with automated ethylene gas release and control system, electrically operated top opening doors, which can do ripening of Bananas, besides other fruits.

A similar product likely to be commissioned in next month at Nuzivedu in Krishna district.

UNI KNR GL UCS2306