The Tripura government on Thursday sent around 750 kg pineapples in around 100 cartons to Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina as part of its “fruit diplomacy” with the neighbouring country, which shares an 856-km international border with it.
The consignment of ‘Kew’, a variety of the queen pineapple which was declared state fruit of Tripura by President Ramnath Kovind in 2018, was handed over to Bangladesh authorities at the Akhaura integrated checkpost this morning.
In July last year, Tripura sent a return gift of 650 kg pineapples to Bangladesh, three days after Prime Minister Hasina had sent a goodwill gift of 300 kg ‘Haaribhanga’ mangoes, a special variety of the fruit grown there, to the then Tripura chief minister Biplab Kumar Deb.
Speaking to reporters after handing over the fruit consignment Thursday, state agriculture assistant director Dipak Baidya said: “It is a goodwill gesture to prove the good and sweet relations between our two countries with this consignment of sweet fruit. We are tied in fond memories with Bangladesh since 1971. We want to relive those memories.”