Lucknow

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath will inaugurate the three-day Uttar Pradesh Aam Mahotsav-2026 at the Indira Gandhi Pratishthan here on Friday when more than 800 varieties of mangoes are set to be displayed, the state government said.

The festival will be held from July 3 to 5 and will feature over 800 mango varieties across seven categories and 56 classes, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Horticulture, Agricultural Marketing, Agricultural Foreign Trade and Agricultural Export Dinesh Pratap Singh said at a press conference.

A Mango Buyer-Seller Conference will also be organised for the first time at Jan Bhavan in Lucknow on July 4 to provide orchardists direct access to buyers and exporters, he said.

Representatives of horticulture departments, progressive orchardists and exporters from Madhya Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Maharashtra will participate in the event along with those from Uttar Pradesh, Singh said.

He said mango saplings displayed at the festival would also be available for sale and appealed to visitors to plant at least one sapling.

The minister said a mango-eating competition for children, a contest featuring mango-based dishes and workshops on advanced cultivation technology, post-harvest management, pest and disease control, and marketing would be among the highlights of the festival.

Singh said Uttar Pradesh continues to be the country's largest mango-producing state, with cultivation spread over 3.27 lakh hectares and an annual production of around 61.96 lakh metric tonnes, accounting for nearly 26.22 per cent of India's total mango output.

He said popular varieties such as Dussehri, Langra, Chausa, Gaurjeet, Lucknow Safeda, Rataul and Amrapali are grown extensively in the Lucknow, Saharanpur, Meerut, Moradabad, Varanasi, Ayodhya and Prayagraj divisions.

Citing data from the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), Singh said exports of mangoes and mango pulp from Uttar Pradesh rose sharply to 3,563 metric tonnes worth Rs 12.67 crore in 2025-26 from 404 metric tonnes worth Rs 2.63 crore in the previous financial year.

According to the minister, mangoes from the state are exported to countries including the United Kingdom, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, Singapore, Kuwait, New Zealand, Belgium, Japan, Italy, Qatar and Russia, and exports are expected to continue during the festival.

Singh said modern mango pack houses have been established in Lucknow, Saharanpur, Varanasi and Amroha for pre-processing and treatment of mangoes in line with international protocols. He added that a fruit testing and treatment centre being developed near Noida International Airport in Jewar is expected to further boost horticultural exports.

READ MORE: A Muslim village proves cleanliness, harmony, development go together

The minister also said around 1.5 crore fruit bags had been distributed among farmers this year to protect mangoes from pests and diseases and improve fruit quality, while a 40 per cent subsidy is being provided for canopy management of ageing and unproductive orchards.