A BRIEF HISTORY OF FRUIT WINES OF MEGHALAYA The world of non-grape wine making remains unexplored. With over 2000 edible fruits in existence, it's surprising that grapes are exclusively seen as the best fruit for wine production. There is a need to reconsider the grape-centric approach and explore the possibility of producing high-quality wines using […]
SEZs (Special Economic Zones) are enclaves within a state that are governed by a set of liberal laws, to encourage private investment and generate employment. They are almost always export-orientated and less-taxed entities and are better administered because the administrative machinery is sensitized toward promoting businesses. Through this article, I propose that a Special Economic […]
In May 2019, the State Government made a significant policy change in the agricultural sector by reclassifying ‘Wild Black Pepper’ (Piper longum) as ‘Long Pepper’ and re-designating it, along with Tezpatta (Bay Leaf – Laurus nobilis), as the mandated crops of the Agriculture Department. This move eliminated the ‘minor forest produce’ label, allowing farmers to […]
Meghalaya can justifiably boast of an extra ordinary diversity of fruits. The state has a very unique set of indigenous fruits, some of which are still in the wild. Since the potential value of these fruits is yet to be unlocked, the world of commerce is largely ignorant of them. While the good news is […]
Meghalaya is blessed with an extraordinary abundance of diverse fruits. Most of these are unique to the state of Meghalaya ranging from Peaches, Plums, Pears, Sohmon, Sohiong, Strawberries, etc. Unfortunately, these are perishable even before it hits the market and this causes huge food loss. But if an ecosystem facilitating wine making industry were to […]
With the introduction of the Breed Improvement Programme, 2000 doses of Ongole FSS (Frozen Semen Straws) have been sent to the 57 Stockman Centres across the state to begin the crossing process. Meghalaya also has an estimated 4 lakh native cows that are low milk and meat yielders. The project aims to cross-breed the native […]
Since 2014 the State’s Agriculture Department has steadfastly upheld the policy to stop subsidising chemical fertilisers and pesticides because of the dangers posed by the chemicals to animal and human health. This decision has reduced the State’s chemical fertiliser consumption by 56.69% without impacting our food security. It has also gradually led to increased demand […]
The cooperative sector, having always been an appendage to the Ministry of Agriculture remained peripheral to the national priorities. Barring a few exceptional states like Maharashtra and Gujarat, the sector mostly remained listless throughout the country, more so in the north-eastern region. This realization may have pushed the Government of India (GoI) to announce a […]
Zero Energy Cool Chambers (ZECC) is a low-cost technology that has been developed by the Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi. It was further customized by Assam Agriculture University, Jorhat. ZECC is an environmentally sustainable model as it can be built using locally available construction materials. Studies indicate that potatoes can be stored for 90 […]
I went through the vision 2050 of the ICAR, a well-written 46-page document, to find if any emphasis had been laid on regionally focussed research, but I couldn’t find any. Not a single sentence about the NER in that document, but since it is a general vision document, one does not need to read much […]
The synergy between technology and public policy made the first green revolution possible', said Dr M.S. Swaminathan, in 2015 at a function organized in Delhi to commemorate the golden Jubilee of the green revolution. A year later, the Hon'ble Prime Minister made a statement at Guwahati that the North-East could trigger the next Green Revolution in the country. There is no gainsaying that the country will benefit immensely if the North-eastern region (NER) develops. It is also undeniable that the ICAR will have to play a critical role, as the principal technology provider if such a Mission were to be ever conceptualized. But is the ICAR primed enough to take the North-eastern region (NER) to the next level?
China produces 75% of global mushrooms. Indian annual production of five lakh Metric Tonnes (MT) is just 2% of the world's production (estimated to touch 2.1 crore MT by 2026). Uttar Pradesh, Tripura, and Kerala are the top three Mushroom producing states in our country. India's Mushroom production enlarged by 29 times in four years preceding 2018. Meghalaya's mushroom production shot up more than ten times in two and a half years, from 27 MT in 2018 to 287 MT in 2021. Conceded, as a state, we don't count for much as of now, De but we shall be - in just a few years. Mark my words!
