The food processing and horticulture department has requested the Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation to earmark a plot where a fruit orchard can be set up.

Subrata Saha, the minister of state, food processing and horticulture department, said last week that they were keen to plant fruit-bearing trees in Salt Lake, New Town and Rajarhat as such trees attract a lot of birds and the “fruits can be enjoyed and shared by the residents”.

Saha was speaking at a Vanmahotsav programme organised by the Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation at the newly-inaugurated CK Park near Tank 9.

According to Saha, his department wants to focus on a different plantation strategies. “The forest department conducts avenue plantation and most of those trees are not fruit-bearing. We want to plant more trees that yield fruits in Salt Lake, New Town and Rajarhat in open spaces as we feel that they provide a ready habitat for birds and can be consumed by residents and visitors alike,” said Saha.

The department has also promised to donate around 5,000 saplings of different fruit trees including pomegranate, guava, papaya, mango and custard apple among others to the civic body.

Krishna Chakraborty, the chairperson of the corporation’s board of administrators, said that they would plant these trees in “secured” locations. “We will ensure that we can protect the saplings and then plant them in areas earmarked by us. Purbachal is one such complex that has large open spaces and we are looking for other spots as well,” said Chakraborty.

She has asked civic officials to earmark a large plot suitable for an orchard in both Salt Lake and Rajarhat.