Medziphema, Feb. 24: The country?s top horticulturists congregated at the School of Agricultural Science Research and Development here today and exchanged their views on making the sector more sustainable in the Northeast.
Participating at a three-day seminar at the institution, more than 150 delegates from across the country are putting their heads together to prepare a horticulture roadmap for the region. The experts were working on a model for diversifying agriculture, especially in the Northeast, because the bio-diversity here and in Sikkim is ideal for horticulture and organic farming.
?Horticulture has to be technology-driven and farmer-centric,? said H.P. Singh, the man behind the technology mission in the region and chairman of the Coconut Development Board.
He said the necessary infrastructure for horticulture crops was created during the Ninth Plan, while technology has been incorporated in the Tenth Plan. Training will be the other major component.
Organic farming, once considered a weakness for states like Nagaland, has become a boon because the demand for healthy non-toxic food is growing at the rate of 20 per cent annually, Singh said.
He said there has been a major boost for bamboo after the Centre named it as a horticulture crop. It was good news for Nagaland because the state, which finalised its bamboo policy this month, will get a share of the Rs 2,600 crore grant allocated by the Centre for the bamboo mission.
Horticulture has to be scientific and systematic, K.L. Chadha, former deputy director-general for horticulture in the Indian Council for Agricultural Research (ICAR), said. Governor Shyamal Datta came down heavily on the?urban bias? in policy-making for the region.