Vet builds 600-tree mango gene bank in Karnataka
A veterinary surgeon in Karnataka has invested his life savings to establish Maavu Mantapa, a 5.4-acre mango gene bank in Kukkila, Bantwal taluk. By May 2026 it housed 600 trees, including 430 indigenous varieties and 170 hybrids or exotic types, with ongoing documentation and fruiting observations.
Key takeaways
- A veterinary surgeon in Karnataka invested his life savings to establish Maavu Mantapa, a mango gene bank in Kukkila.
- By May 2026 the living archive housed 600 trees: 430 indigenous and 170 hybrids or exotic varieties.
- The project is supported by a volunteer network called NaaMaaMi, which helps identify and track mango varieties across the region.
- Five trees bore fruit in the current year, with about 100 more expected in the next season, as documentation continues.
- The initiative frames mango diversity as cultural memory, aiming to prevent loss amid market and climate pressures.
What Happened
In the village of Vitlapadnur, near Kukkila in Bantwal taluk of Dakshina Kannada, a veterinary surgeon-turned-conservationist established a living archive for wild and preserved mango varieties. The project, named Maavu Mantapa, sits on a 5.4-acre plot and is described as a mango gene bank formed from the practitioner’s personal savings. By May 2026 the collection had reached 600 trees, with a split of 430 indigenous varieties and 170 hybrids or exotic types. Five plants yielded fruit in the current year, and about 100 more are expected to bear fruit in the next season, as part of an ongoing documentation effort.
The initiative is supported by NaaMaaMi — Naada Maavu Mitraru, a volunteer group that helps identify and track mango species across the region, underscoring the collaborative approach behind the archive rather than a stand-alone orchard.
Why It Matters
The project aims to preserve a “mango vocabulary” tied to Karnataka’s local landscapes, cultures and memory, by safeguarding trees that carry regional names and histories. The creator emphasizes that loss of wild varieties erodes cultural identity as markets favor standardized fruits, and climate stress adds to the risk of decline for these traditional trees. The living archive seeks to document each variety alongside its origin and lineage, once fruiting begins in earnest.
Background
Across Karnataka’s Malnad and coastal areas, many native mango varieties have dwindled due to farm-shifts, market preferences for uniform varieties, and environmental pressures. The Maavu Mantapa project frames itself as a proactive countermeasure by collecting, naming, and growing diverse mango trees to preserve both biological diversity and local memory. The effort is part of broader conservation work involving farmers, nurseries and researchers who aim to keep these varieties from vanishing entirely.
Key Facts
- Location: 5.4-acre plot in Kukkila, Vitlapadnur village, Bantwal taluk, Dakshina Kannada, Karnataka.
- Founder: Dr P Manohara Upadhya, a veterinary surgeon by training and conservationist by interest.
- Name of project: Maavu Mantapa, a mango gene bank.
- Financial basis: Funded with the founder’s life savings.
- Tree count by May 2026: 600 trees total.
- Composition: 430 indigenous varieties and 170 Indian hybrid/exotic varieties.
- Early yields: Five plants bore fruit in the current year; about 100 more are expected to yield next season.
- Support group: NaaMaaMi (Naada Maavu Mitraru) assists in identifying and tracking varieties.
- Names and origins cited: examples include Otte Maavu (Kukkalli) and Kuri Tale (Anavatti, Hosanagar); Belur is linked to Sagara taluk.
What Happens Next
Documentation of each accession is ongoing as trees begin to fruit, with continued monitoring planned under the Maavu Mantapa framework and the NaaMaaMi volunteer network to track provenance, characteristics and potential uses of the stored varieties.
Sources reviewed
Project Chintan independently synthesized and analyzed information cross-checked across the sources listed above.
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