Dragon fruit in Gujarat from now onwards will be known as ‘Kamalam’. Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani on Tuesday announced that the state government has decided to rename the dragon fruit as its shape resembles Lotus.
Lotus in Sanskrit is called Kamalam.
"The State government has decided to rename Dragon Fruit. As the outer shape of the fruit resembles a lotus, hence Dragon Fruit shall be renamed as Kamalam," the Chief Minister was quoted by the media.
Rupani said, “We have applied for the patent of the dragon fruit to be called Kamalam.”
The chief minister said that the name of the fruit did not sound appropriate, so we decided to rename it and there’s nothing political about it.
Dragon Fruit is a tropical fruit also known as Pitaya or strawberry pear in different parts of the world. It has a unique look and taste, which resembles Lotus. Lotus in Sanskrit is called Kamalam. The fruit has become increasingly popular amongst Indians in recent years.
Earlier, Gujarat’s forest department had applied to the Indian Council of Agricultural Research to rename the fruit. In September, Kutch farmers had requested the Gujarat government to rename the fruit to Kamalam.
PM Modi in his monthly radio show Mann Ki Baat in July 2019 had mentioned about the dragon fruit farming in dry Kutch area of Gujarat and congratulated the Kutch farmers for the cultivation of this imported fruit so that India can be self-reliant. A large number of farmers in Bhuj, Gandhidham and Mandvi areas are cultivating dragon fruit.
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Dragon Fruit is high in vitamins and minerals and a significant level of vitamin C present in the fruit helps in fighting chronic disease by boosting the immune system.
In India, the fruit is cultivated in Gujarat, Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Odisha and Andaman and Nicobar islands.