The office building of the food park in Malda

Malda, Aug. 17: Gujarat-based dairy giant Amul is all set to invest Rs 15 crore to launch a food processing unit in Malda in a joint venture with the Bengal government.

The unit to produce fruit pulp will come up at the food park that has been lying idle ever since it was opened by the state food processing department in 2005.

Additional district magistrate of Malda Nurul Islam said Amul’s investment would be a boost for the food park. “The investment by a reputed company like Amul will add a special status to the park, where hardly any unit has come up in the past six years. More entrepreneurs will be attracted to the park with the arrival of Amul. Besides, the project will boost the economy of Malda and help fruit growers across north Bengal,” said Islam.

Sources in the district administration said the food park was spread over 33 acres with an office building. The park has also power and water connections.

Islam said the food processing department would provide land and other infrastructural facilities to Amul. Technical as well as financial assistance to set up the food processing unit will be extended by the Union science and technology department.

The general manager of Amul Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation Limited, Manoranjan Pani, and the principal scientist of the Union science and technology department, Debabrata Majumder, will visit the park on Friday. Both Pani and Majumder will also meet the food processing department officials at Mayukh Bhavan in Salt Lake tomorrow.

The ADM said the company had already completed its detailed project report on the unit.

Director of the district food processing and horticulture department Priyaranjan Sannigrahi said to begin with, Amul would produce pulp from mangoes. Later, the company would produce pineapple and tomato pulps as well.

According to him, Malda produces two to three lakh tonnes of mangoes a year.

“The Amul unit proposes to produce 10 tonnes of pulp per hour. The principal scientist of the Union science and technology department himself has taken the initiative to provide all kinds of technical assistance,” said Sannigrahi.