A facility to support farmers, especially those growing medicinal and aromatic plants, was inaugurated in Langkyrding here on February 25, a press release informed today.
The Central Institute for Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (CIMAP) Technology Window was established jointly by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)-CIMAP, Lucknow and the Institute of Natural Resources (INR) of the Meghalaya Basin Development Authority (MBDA).
It was formally inaugurated at Spring Valley Farm in Langkyrding by P Shakil Ahmed, Principal Secretary of the Agriculture and Horticulture Department in the presence of Praboth Kumar Trivedi, Director of CSIR-CIMAP and others.
CIMAP is a multidisciplinary research institute of CSIR’s established to carry out high quality research in biological and chemical sciences in an effort to extend technology support to farmers and entrepreneurs of medicinal and aromatic plants.
In Meghalaya, the Technology Window was open to facilitate support services to the farmers that are engaged in the cultivation and production of such plants under the state’s Megh Aroma Mission, which was launched in 2019.
Since the mission’s inception, 110 hectares has been created across the state purposely for aromatic plantation. The primary crops introduced include citronella, lemon grass, geranium, palmarosa, vetiver and others. To facilitate large-scale area expansion, five Central Zone Nurseries have been established in different agro-climatic zones of the state.
Six distillation units and processing facilities have also been commissioned, while the extension support of CIMAP Lucknow has facilitated the production and validation of essential oils.
The aim is to cover 1,000 hectares in the next three years, with 250 hectares proposed to be covered by the end of this financial year.
Ahmed stated that the window in the state will not only help with the provision of planting materials but potentially offer Meghalaya’s young entrepreneurs with opportunities for long-term tie-ups with major buyers and improved linkages to bigger markets.
