Date palm becomes centre of attraction

BALING: A date palm out of 40 planted along the banks of Sungai Baling on land owned by the state department of drainage and irrigation seven years ago, is heavily laden with fruits which are almost ripe.
This is the second time the date palms here have borne fruits after the first time in 1984 when a palm near Masjid Ridzuaniah produced the fruits.
At that time, the mosque committee presented the country's first prime minister, the late Tunku Abdul Rahman with some of the fruits.
Today, the date palm which is fruiting has attracted the attention of the local community, including the Chinese, as it is among 40 which were planted in front of their business centre.
According to bicycle repairman Pin Tau, 61, previously several palms in front of his shop did not bear fruit.
"I find it a miracle that this palm has borne fruit which are now almost ripe," he said.
In the case of Shah Bari Din, 66, he said he was also surprised that the palm began to bear a lot of fruits, especially in the month of Ramadan.
"Before this, I only saw dates in Makkah and never thought that the palms in Baling would also bear a lot of fruits," he said. — Bernama