Tripura chief minister Biplab Kumar Deb, accompanied by agriculture minister Pranajit Singharoy and Lok Sabha MP Pratima Bhowmik, flagged off Kisan Rail’s maiden journey from Agartala to New Delhi on Friday, 11th June 2021.
Carrying over 12 MT of different varities of pineapple from farmers of West Tripura and Sepahijala districts, the train is scheduled to reach New Delhi in 48 hours. Few consignments will also be loaded from Ambassa, Kumarghat and Dharmanagar. While a few consignments will be off-loaded in Guwahati, some will be sent to Jaipur and Mumbai from Delhi.
The consignment has been loaded in a general freight coach under the supervision of horticulture experts, while the transportation cost has been fixed at Rs 2025 per MT up to Howrah, Rs 882 per MT till Guwahati and Rs 2815 per MT up to New Delhi, officials said.
Depending on the size, the farmers will be paid anywhere between Rs 15-20 for each pineapple. Speaking at the occasion, Deb expressed gratitude towards PM Narendra Modi and Union railway minister Piyush Goyal for connecting Agartala with the Kisan railway network and assisting the farmers to sell their products.