A unique campaign aimed at conserving traditional jackfruit varieties will be launched during the three-day mango and jackfruit festival beginning in Sullia on Friday. The event is being organised by Team Ubar, Sullia Farmers Producer Company Limited, Pranava Souharda Sahakarai Sangha and Suddi Krishi Arivu Kendra.
Grafting expert Anil Kumar, popularly known as Jack Anil from Kabaka in Puttur and owner of Ninnikallu nursery, has invited the public to bring scions from old and unique jackfruit trees and get them grafted free of cost at the festival venue.
“Our objective is to propagate rare and locally cherished jackfruit varieties. All people need to do is bring a healthy scion from a jackfruit tree. I will graft it on the spot and hand over the sapling free of cost,” Anil said.
Anil will bring the necessary rootstock required for grafting. The initiative is being jointly organised by the Sullia Jackfruit Festival committee and Jack Anil as part of efforts to conserve traditional jackfruit germplasm. Participants have been advised to carefully select and bring healthy scions from their trees, as only jackfruit saplings will be grafted during the programme.
Anil noted that while several new jackfruit varieties, including fast-yielding cultivars from Vietnam and Thailand, have gained popularity in recent years, many of them have relatively shorter lifespans compared to traditional varieties.
“We have realised that many of these newer varieties do not live as long as our indigenous trees. There are numerous local varieties that people have an emotional attachment to because of their unique taste, aroma and characteristics. We want to ensure that such trees are not lost. The campaign is not merely about multiplying saplings but also about reviving public interest in conserving local biodiversity and preserving heirloom varieties for future generations,” he said.
To help participants identify suitable planting material, Anil has also released a video on social media explaining how to select the right scion for grafting.
Shree Padre, researcher and editor of ‘Adike Patrike’, a Kannada agricultural magazine, described the initiative as a novel idea and a precedent that could be adopted by organisers of jackfruit festivals elsewhere.
“However, in the future, the service need not be offered free of cost. Organisers could instead announce the details of the grafting services in advance, allowing people to book slots, submit scions and collect the grafted saplings later. This model has the potential to be replicated across India and could become part of major conservation drives for wild mangoes and other fruit varieties that hold both nostalgic and conservation value,” he said.
Padre said the organisers are expecting a good response in Sullia, as around 400 to 500 people have already been trained in grafting through the Nada Maavu Mitraru (NaMaMi) group in Sullia.
