JK News Today
Jammu, March 8:
CSIR-Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine Jammu organized National Workshop on the theme, “CSIR-Aroma Mission: Value Addition of High Value Aroma Ingredients for Socio-Economic Upliftment & Rural Prosperity” to do a brainstorming for devising the strategies for value addition of aromatic plants that can empower farmers and promote entrepreneurship in rural areas. The delegates, industrialists and entrepreneurs drawn from all over India attended this workshop. This National workshop was conducted under the supervision of Dr. Ram Vishwakarma, Director, IIIM and President of Workshop, Er. Rajneesh Anand, Chief Scientist & Chairman, and Dr. Tasduq Abdullah, Organising Secretary.
During the daylong deliberations of workshop it was said that the ministry for science and technology has launched National Aroma Mission as its effort to scientifically augment India’s perfumery, essential oil and ayurvedic products industry because the Indian perfumery was a traditional industry and its growth would be boosted by injecting the right scientific inputs.
Dr S.V. Shukla from Fragrance & Flavour Development Centre (FFDC) Ministry of MSME, Govt. of India, Nivedita Assar M/s Mohini Agency Industrial Fragrances (I) Pvt. Ltd Navi Mumbai, Ajay K. Jain, MD Virat Exports Pvt. Ltd. New Delhi, Dr. Ramakant Harlalka, Nishant Aromas, Mumbai, Dr. R.L. Gupta from Menthol and Allied, Ghaziabad, Dr. Sumit Gairola and Dr. Perwaiz Hassan were among the main speakers who presented their work covering research & development and commercial aspects of aroma and its scope for entrepreneurship.
Earlier the inaugural function of the workshop was held in the auditorium of CSIR-IIIM. At the inaugural function, Dr. Ram Vishwakarma, Director, CSIR-IIIM, Jammu in his welcome address said that CSIR-Aroma Mission has been launched to boost cultivation of aromatic crops like lavender, rosemary and lemon grass and medicinal plants like ashwagandha and satavar, keeping in view plight of farmers involved in traditional agriculture and their flight from rural areas due to climate change. He further told that uunder Aroma mission programme, the cultivation of these crops will be promoted especially in unproductive, marginal waste lands including those affected by water scarcity, drought, salinity or flood in Uttar Pradesh, Uttrakhand, J&K, AP, HP, MP, Odisha, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Karnataka, Chhattisgarh, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and North Eastern states. On the likely outcomes in the next two years, Dr. Ram was hopeful that a minimum of 8000 hectares of additional area would be brought under cultivation of various aromatic and medicinal crops generating employment among rural youth, and creating trained and skilled manpower leading to an estimated income enhancement of farmers in the range of Rs 25,000 to 75,000 per hectare depending upon the crop they would grow.Dr. Ram Vishwarkarma also informed that a regional centre of CSIR-IIIM, Jammu will be started at Leh in coming summer where some aroma crops shall also be cultivated under the current aroma mission.
Er. Rajneesh Anand presented vote of thanks whileas Dr. Deepika Singh conducted the proceedings of the workshop.
