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Gujarat has emerged arsenic the country’s starring shaper of okra, with the Saurashtra–Kutch portion progressively positioning itself arsenic a large maturation motor for horticulture up of the Vibrant Gujarat Regional Conference (VGRC) 2026 to beryllium held successful Rajkot, officials said connected Monday (December 29, 2025).
According to the Director of Horticulture, Gujarat, the State ranked archetypal successful India during 2023–24 some successful presumption of country nether okra cultivation and wide production. Okra was cultivated crossed 93,955 hectares successful Gujarat, with a full accumulation of 11.68 lakh tonnes. Of this, the Saurashtra–Kutch portion accounted for astir 15 per cent of the cultivated country and astir 13% of full production.
In 2024–25, okra cultivation expanded crossed 12 districts of Saurashtra and Kutch, covering astir 14,000 hectares and yielding adjacent to 1.5 lakh tonnes, underlining the region’s increasing value successful the State’s horticulture landscape.
Gujarat contributed 7.66% to India’s full rootlike accumulation during 2024–25. In the aforesaid year, the Saurashtra–Kutch portion recorded cultivation crossed 2.32 lakh hectares, producing 47.91 lakh metric tonnes of horticultural output. Productivity stood astatine 20.60 metric tonnes per hectare, reflecting improved farming practices, amended agri-infrastructure, and higher ratio among farmers.
Horticulture has go a important contributor to Gujarat’s cultivation growth, with an expanding fig of farmers shifting from accepted crops owed to higher productivity and amended returns per hectare. Backed by proactive authorities policies, horticultural crops are present grown connected astir 20 per cent of the State’s full cultivation area.
The Department of Horticulture is implementing respective State inducement schemes on with Centrally Sponsored Schemes specified arsenic the Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH) and the National Horticulture Mission (NHM). These initiatives absorption connected area-based clump development, protected cultivation, post-harvest and cold-chain infrastructure, cleanable planting material, and capacity-building programmes. Under MIDH, farmers and Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs) person subsidies for hi-tech horticulture, polyhouses, packhouses, grading and packing units, training, demonstrations, and marketplace linkages.
The beardown show comes arsenic Gujarat prepares to big the VGRC for Kutch and Saurashtra successful Rajkot successful January 2026. The Vibrant Gujarat Regional Exhibition (VGRE) volition besides beryllium held alongside the conference. The lawsuit aims to item determination achievements, beforehand balanced development, and unfastened caller avenues for concern successful sectors captious to the Saurashtra–Kutch region.
“VGRC 2026 is expected to bring unneurotic policymakers, manufacture leaders, planetary experts, innovators, and different stakeholders. Through sector-focused sessions, exhibitions, and collaborative platforms, the league volition showcase however Saurashtra and Kutch are poised to pb the adjacent signifier of cultivation innovation and sustainable growth,” officials said.
