By Anjali Sharma
WASHINGTON – India on Friday announced in a major push for horticultural exports, India flagged off its first international consignment of rose-scented litchis from Pathankot, Punjab to Doha, Qatar, amounted to one metric tonne, and Dubai, UAE, amounted to 0.5 metric tonne.
Commerce & Industry Ministry said in a statement on Friday that the consignment was sent on 23rd June 2025.
The initiative was led Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority in collaboration with the Department of Horticulture, Punjab, and supported by Lullu Group and progressive farmer Shri Prabhat Singh of Sujanpur, who supplied the premium produce.
Punjab contributed 12.39 per cent to India’s total litchi output in FY 2023–24, with a production of 71,490 metric tonnes and cultivation spread across 4,327 hectares.
India’s total litchi export during this period was 639.53 metric tonnes.
Pathankot’s emergence as a litchi export hub backed by its favourable climate, media reported.
It reflects India’s growing global footprint in agri-exports, which reached USD 3.87 billion in FY 2024–25, up 5.67 per cent from the previous year.
Commerce Ministry said that with rising demand for fruits like cherries, jamun, and litchis globally, this move reinforces the Government’s efforts to empower farmers, diversify agri-exports, and bolster India’s competitiveness in fresh produce on the world stage.
