Fruits

Indian climate favours the development of a large range of varieties of fruits. Indians’ share in the total fruit production of the world is 10 per cent. Mango, banana, citrus, pineapple, papaya, guava, sapota (cheekoo}, jackfruit, litchi, and grapes, among the tropical and subtropical fruits; apple, pear, peach, plum, apricot, almond, walnut, among the temperate fruits; and aonla, ber, pomegranate, fig, phalsa, among the arid fruits are important. India leads the world in the production of mango, banana, sapota (cheeked] and nimboo (acid lime}, and in productivity of grapes per unit land area.

India is the largest producer of mango, banana, sapota, and acid-lime. About 40 per cent of world’s mango and 23 per cent of world’s banana are produced in the country. In grapes, India has recorded the highest productivity per unit area in the world. The overall production of the horticulture crops registered an increase of 8 per cent during 2004-05 as compared to 2003-04, while the percentage increase in fruit production has been about 1.5 per cent during the same period.