New Delhi, July 2 (IANS) Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit Friday opened the 22nd edition of the annual mango festival which will showcase around 400 varieties of the fruit for the next three days here.
The festival at Dilli Haat in north Delhi’s Pitampura area will continue till Sunday.
“This festival will help people from all over Delhi to come here and have a taste of different varieties of mangoes,†said Dikshit.
Mango cultivators from states like Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Bihar and Punjab are taking part in the festival.
Complimenting the farmers for making mangoes popular across the world, she said: “With names like Aishwarya, Sachin and Bapu, the farmers have made the fruit even more attractive.â€
The chief minister also appealed to the farmers to use least pesticides for their crops.
The mango festival also had competition among mango growers in 10 varieties of mangoes like Dussehri, Langra, Chausa, Mallika, Husnara, Rataul, Ramkela and Fazli. Dikshit gave away awards to the winners.