Bhubaneswar, May 19: Seventy-two varieties of mango from across the state are being displayed at the second edition of the state-level fruit festival that began here today. The festival will continue on Adivasi Ground till May 22.

This year, there are 2,932 entries, including more than 2,000 for mangoes, at the festival. This is significantly higher than last year’s 2,305. Horticulture officials attributed the increase to the impressive mango and horticultural yield in all districts.

The directorate of horticulture and Odisha Horticulture Development Society have set up 70 kiosks that are not only dedicated to fruits, but also innovative products using food-processing technologies. Papaya candy, sliced ripe and green mangoes, dried stone apple, mango murabba (mango pieces in sugar syrup), mango leather (both sweet and spicy) were the big hits.

Mango is easily the showstopper at the programme with more than 72 varieties, including langra, chausa, himsagar, Bombay green, latsinduri, suvarnarekha, amrapalli, mallika, ratna, neelam, keshar, mul goa, banganapalli, totapuri, gulabkhus and cherukurasam, on display. Chief minister Naveen Patnaik inaugurated the programme.

Other major fruits on display are six varieties of banana, five types of citrus fruits, two types of jackfruit, stone apple, pineapple, pomegranate, guava, sapota, coconut, dates, palm, kandu and star apple. Twenty types of squash, 10 varieties of dried fruit and over 30 varieties of mango pickle are also on display.

Stressing on better marketing of mangoes produced in the state, the chief minister said that Odisha mangoes were getting market acceptability in Lucknow, Delhi, Bangalore and Calcutta.

“The Agriculture Policy 2013 has given priority to commercial production of fruits, vegetables and ornamental crops,” he said.

Agriculture minister Debi Prasad Mishra said: “Now, there is enough scope to have post-harvest loans of up to Rs 25 lakh and subsidies for setting up of cold storage, drip or micro-irrigation support and green houses for producing selective vegetables and flowers for better returns from horticulture.”

Assistant horticulture officer Susanta Ranjan Dash said: “Odisha has 13 lakh hectares under horticulture and 3.86 lakh is used to produce fruits. Most of the land — 2.28 lakh hectares — is used exclusively for mango production.”

Odisha has earned a reputation of producing quality mangoes for markets outside the state and the country.

Apart from fruits and food-processing products, kiosks set up by horticulture companies, nutrient manufacturers, farm-implant producers and oil palm producing companies in the state have set up kiosks at the exhibition.

There are also kiosks that give information on organic farming and drip irrigation.

On Tuesday, a drawing competition for schoolchildren will be held to spread awareness on cultivation of various fruits. A fruit-eating competition will be held on Wednesday.