Adani to invest Rs 1,000 cr in Himachal

Business conglomerate Adani Group on Monday announced investment plans of up to Rs 1,000 crore (Rs 10 billion) in Himachal Pradesh through its new venture in fruit and vegetable marketing.

The Rs 16,000-crore (Rs 160 billion) Adani Group is setting up three modern controlled atmospheric units in the state at a cost of Rs 160 crore (rs 1.6 billion) for storing fresh fruits and vegetables.

The new venture - Adani Agrifresh Limited – will supply high-quality fruits and vegetables by developing an integrated product-handling system.

AAFL plans to invest Rs 1,000 crore in Himachal Pradesh in the next three years and also enter the fresh fruit and vegetable market in Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka in the near future, the company's president Ravindra Jain said.

The three CA units in Himachal will be set up at Rewali in Kumarsen, Sainj in Theog and Mehandli in Rohroo area of Shimla district and will each have a capacity of 6,000 mt, he said.

The cold-storage units will be state-of-the-art where percentage of gases like oxygen, carbon dioxide and nitrogen would be controlled and fruits would retain their freshness, colour and juices for a period of about one year, Jain added.

The company will start the procurement of apple from Shimla and Kinnaur districts by end of the month and prices would be announced on weekly basis.

AAFL would also develop nurseries for multiplication and supply of plants and root stocks to help the farmers.