Doha - Qatar is heading for a harvest. Hundreds of mango trees in the plantation project of Ras Laffan Industrial City (RLC) are bearing mature-green and ready for plucking fruits. The varieties include India's famous mangoes 'Kesar', 'Alphonso' and 'Langari' etc.
Planted four years ago, these tropical trees flourishing in Qatar's arid climate have wowed the RLC community. Spread across four acres of land, a majority of 3,000-odd trees are bearing fruits. Each tree, 4-5 feet high and three metres-wide, is laden with some 10-20 mangoes of different sizes. This is the first time Qatar has witnessed such a massive cultivation of mango trees in an open area.
Tucked away in the south eastern corner of RLC, the plantation is divided into four sectors and is separated by a five meter wide road. The whole area is surrounded by two or three rows of casuarina plants acting as a windbreaker for the mango trees.
The whole project was inspired during a visit to India by H E Abdullah bin Hamad Al Attiyah, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Energy and Industry. Al Attiyah visited Reliance Petroleum's plant in Gujarat, the western Indian state which is known for world famous Alphonso mangoes, RLC sources told The Peninsula.
The Reliance Petroleum played a lead role in the launch of the project. Experts from the company surveyed the proposed site in Ras Laffan in June 2002 and studied the weather pattern, conducted soil tests and submitted a report to RLC; and the project was launched in 2004.
The plantation has over 3,000 trees belonging to nearly ten different high yielding breeds. Of this, a majority of the trees belong to the famous 'Kesar' and 'Alphonso' varieties.
Kesar is considered the queen of mangoes in India. With a unique taste, it is characterized by its golden colour with green overtones. The fruit is slightly smaller compared to the Alphonso variety.
By Mohamed Iqbal
© The Peninsula 2008
