LONGDING : The College of Horticulture and Forestry (CHF), Pasighat, under the Central Agricultural University (CAU) on Tuesday organised an awareness programme on gerbera cultivation and distributed quality planting materials and inputs to farmers under the All India Coordinated Research Project (AICRP) on Floriculture at the ICAR–Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK), Longding.
Conducted under the North Eastern Hill (NEH) component, the programme aimed to promote commercial floriculture and enhance livelihood opportunities for farmers, particularly women and rural youth, through scientific flower cultivation.
A large number of farmers from different villages of Longding district participated in the programme, which focused on the cultivation potential of gerbera, a commercially important cut flower known for its high market demand and profitability under protected cultivation.
Leading the programme, AICRP on Floriculture Principal Investigator and CHF Pasighat Professor Sunil Kumar delivered a keynote lecture on the status and future prospects of floriculture in the Northeast. He highlighted gerbera cultivation as an emerging enterprise capable of generating sustainable income and elaborated on scientific production practices, including greenhouse cultivation, planting techniques, nutrient management, irrigation, pest and disease control, harvesting, grading, packaging and marketing.
Kumar encouraged farmers to adopt modern floriculture technologies and avail themselves of government-supported programmes for establishing viable flower production units. He also interacted with participants and addressed practical challenges related to floriculture.
Welcoming the guests and farmers, ICAR-KVK Longding Senior Scientist-cum-Head Dr Utpal Kumar Bhattacharya underscored the importance of crop diversification and said floriculture has significant potential to become an integral component of farming systems in Longding district. He highlighted its role in income generation, employment creation, women’s empowerment and rural entrepreneurship.
The programme was attended by Subject Matter Specialists Vikas (Horticulture), Dr Amit Kumar (Land and Water Management Engineering) and Dr Deep Narayan Mishra (Plant Protection), who provided technical guidance on improved cultivation and crop management practices.
As part of the initiative, quality planting materials and essential cultivation inputs were distributed among selected beneficiary farmers to facilitate the adoption of gerbera cultivation and establish demonstration units in their villages.
An interactive session was also held during which farmers shared their experiences and challenges related to horticultural farming.
Experts responded to their queries and offered recommendations suited to local agro-climatic conditions.
