Let a thousand flowers bloom
- Hueiyen Lanpao Editorial :: March 21, 2012 -
This common misquotation from Mao Zedong's famous line, "Letting a hundred flowers blossom and a hundred schools of thought contend is the policy for promoting progress in the arts and the sciences and a flourishing socialist culture in our land.", may not be the exact expression.
But this is the closest we could come out to the overwhelming response over the news snippet and the accompanying photograph of Tulip which was published in the front paper of this edition on March 19.
Since the paper of that particular edition hit the news stand, many of our esteemed readers have been ringing up to get more details.
For the uninitiated, it was a news report on how Tulip, which is not just one of the most beautiful flowers in the world but also the National flower of Turkey, has been successfully grown by a young floriculturist in Manipur.
Enchanted by the beauty of the flower, 34-year old Sapam Debchand of Sagolband Tera Sapam Leirak is said to have procured around 50 saplings of Tulip from one Nazir Ahmad Dar of Srinagar last year and the saplings have transformed his garden into a riot of colours this spring.
The overwhelming response of the readers to the news snippet could be gauged to some extent when one of the readers admitted that apart from pictures and in movies; he had never seen real Tulip in life.
But in general, people in Manipur love to grow and nurture flowers, and why shouldn't they be, after all, flowers have been described as 'a perfect replica of our life'.
As every flower lovers know, flowers have a language of their own and for centuries flowers are known to play a significant role in human life. They have the power to make man happy and cheerful.
On different occasions, individuals make use of different types of flowers to express their emotions and feelings. Flowers are also capable of influencing our moods.
Even scientific studies have proved that presence of bright multi-coloured flowers can intensify feelings of contentment and can produce joyful emotion.
Talking of flowers and its significance, commercial aspect of cultivating flowers is an area that has great potential for stimulating new employment opportunities and generates revenue in Manipur.
Favourable climatic conditions in the state permit growing of different varieties of flowers throughout the year. Successful cultivation of Tulips, which normally do not grow in the open or in tropical climates as they need cold winters to grow, is a testimony to the suitability of the soil here.
However, in the absence of proper marketing facilities, development in floriculture or commercial cultivation of flowers has remained confined to small patches and nurseries.
Instead of sitting upon a 'gold mine', it is high time for the state government and its related department to pay attention to tapping the opulence of floricultural resources bestowed upon us by Mother Nature.
Our supplication is let a thousand flowers bloom and spread the fragrance to every heart for blissful joy in this strife-torn state.
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