Governor lauds CSIR-NEIST, promotes medicinal plants
Source: Chronicle News Service
Imphal, April 03 2024:
Governor Anusuiya Uikey attended the distribution of honey-bee boxes and quality planting materials of medicinal & aromatic plants to farmers organised by CSIR-North East Institute of Science & Technology NEIST, Branch Laboratory, Lamphelpat under CSIR-Floriculture & Aroma Mission Projects at its campus on Wednesday.
During the programme, the Governor also released a book entitled Hidak Kanaraba Pambishing, (A treatise of medical, aromatic & economic plants) written by CSIR-NEIST Branch, Lamphelpat chief scientist Dr Huidrom Birkumar Singh.
Speaking at the event, Governor Anusuiya noted that CSIR has been at the forefront of scientific innovation, research education and support to private industries and farmers.
"Initiatives like Floriculture Mission and Aroma Mission projects under the mandate of CSIR have helped farmers and entrepreneurs alike through economic uplift and development of the rich bio-resources of the region" .
"Farmers have benefited from cultivation of medicinal plants and other economically important plants through these missions of CSIR," she said while acknowledging that need for alternative medicines was significantly realised during COVID-19 pandemic for boosting immunity.
Urging the experts to make the masses aware about importance of such medicinal plants, Anusuiya also stated that beekeeping is an important venture for farmers in terms of additional income besides promoting extremely important role of bees in the ecosystem.
Regarding the newly released book, the Governor mentioned that surveying, identifying and documenting existing traditional knowledge of medicinally and economically important plants of a region is essential to disseminate the knowledge to present and future generations.
Stating that all preservation of knowledge starts with documentation, she lauded Dr H Birkumar for documenting the rich traditional knowledge heritage which will be an archival material for generations to come and appreciated his efforts to donate the books for the internally displaced persons (IDPs) staying in relief camps through the Raj Bhavan.
The Governor noted that the book details the botanical identification, characteristics, habit and habitat, distribution, ethno-medicinal and other economic uses of 117 plant species found in Manipur with colour photographs.
The North Eastern region is a part of the Indo-Burma Centre of Biodiversity Hotspot and this book records the medicinal, aromatic and economic importance of Manipur plants, she added.
CSIR-NEIST, Jorhat director Dr VM Tiwari, and CSIR-Central Food Technological Research Institute, Mysuru director Dr Sridevi Annapurna Singh also attended the event.
Later in the evening, a CSIR team visited Raj Bhavan and took stock of the herbal garden along with Governor Anusuiya Uikey.