The third edition of the Orange Festival started in the hill town of Kalimpong, around 70km from here, on Saturday.

The two-day event is being hosted by the Directorate of Cinchona and Other Medicinal Plants under the state horticulture department, in association with the Kalimpong district administration and the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration.

“The mandarin oranges of Darjeeling and Kalimpong hills are known across the world. We are constantly working to increase its production and consulting experts from the concerned field. A series of initiatives have been taken in this regard. We expect that in the upcoming seasons, orange production gradually increases in the hills,” said Arup Roy, the state minister of horticulture and fruit processing, said on the sidelines of the inaugural function of the fest organised near Dambar Chowk in Kalimpong town.

This is the first time that the festival has been organised outside Darjeeling district. The idea is to promote the orange fruit as well as attract more farmers to cultivate the winter fruit.

A source in the state horticulture department said the juicier oranges of the hills are much better in quality than its Nagpur variants.

However due to several reasons, including old plants and fungal infections, many farmers shy away from growing the fruit. “That is why the area of orange cultivation, which was around 1,200 acres earlier, has reduced to 200 acres now,” said the source.

The department has taken up the onus of addressing problems faced by the growers and is also promoting the fruit to increase their market.

“Hundreds of tourists are visiting the hills now. We hope many will turn up at the fest. Around 50 stalls have come up at the festival where oranges and different products made from the fruit are on display,” said an official.

At the fest, tourists can also hear interesting anecdotes of orange cultivation from the growers. “Some veteran orange growers from Mungpoo will share their experiences at the event,” the official added.