Biren promises financial assistance to Orange growers

Pothashang News Service: Imphal, December 8, 2018: Manipur chief minister N. Biren Singh assured that all the orange growers of Tamenglong who approach to the government with plantation details will be provided financial assistance.

Biren made the assurance on the launching day of the fifteenth edition of state level Orange Festival at Mini Stadium ,Tamenglong district headquarter, today.

He said what had been promised have been delivering in time, whether it is road, women’s market, helicopter service, road transport service, doctor’s transit house, Tamenglong water supply scheme, FCI godown, SBI Tamei Branch. This is called governance said the chief minister.

Cold storage centre will be established and a horticulture office will be set up at Tamenglong soon, he added.

From the year 2014 to 2018 the orange production hasn’t increased from 43.81 metric ton, systematically technically the orange growers as well as the committee need to work together for the better production of oranges in Tamenglong, said the chief minister.

The chief minister also directed the department of horticulture to set up a research team within a week especially for the Tamenglong orange to look into the problems faced by the orange growers of Tamenglong.

One hundred and seventy-three stalls were opened in the fair.

Manipur chief minister N. Biren Singh said the state government will provide loans to orange farmers and one state level committee for the orange growers will be formed to give technical support for increasing production and give processing technology.

Horticulture and soil conservation minister Th. Shyamkumar said this festival, motivated to promote orange farmers and boost state’s economy, would attract buyers from outside by the peculiar orange of Manipur.  There has been a proposal to the state horticulture department for production of orange wine, he added.

The minister wished that the festival promotes work culture and brings peace in the state. He promised the farmers that the government will keep supporting orange farmers.

The second day of the festival will have a seminar on “Orange and other horticulture crops: preparations, problems and perspectives”.

There will be “Tamenglong’s Got Talent” programme and music shows in the evening.

The festival will have Orange Queen contest on the last day of the festival.

There will be night camping, trekking, rafting and Kayaking, indigenous games, wall climbing, etc during the festival.

Consumer affairs minister Karam Shyam, MLAs Samuel Jendai and Awangbou Newmai attended the festival.