In partnership with the Tea & Ex-Tea Garden Labourers Development Association, the National Institute of Agricultural Marketing (NIAM), an independent organization under the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmer’s Welfare, organized a comprehensive three-day workshop at Margherita College that focused on sustainable citrus and plantation crop farming. This project, which is supported by Margherita College’s Entrepreneurship Development Cell, intends to investigate marketing potential and difficulties encountered by small-scale growers.
The workshop officially opened on Monday under the direction of Dr. Atanu Kakoty, the Margherita College principal. Prominent individuals that joined him included Dr. Bijit Kumar Saud, Principal Scientist of the Citrus and Plantation Crops Research Station at the Assam Agriculture University in Tinsukia; Dr. Gautam Purkayastha, Vice Principal; and Dr. Ranjit Pandit, Academic Coordinator. The Tea and Ex-Tea Garden Labourers Development Association’s general secretary, Ashwini Kumar Tasa, convener Pranjal Baraik, advisor Ankur Gogoi, and co-coordinators Anjan Kumar Bordoloi and Yemokhya Fakay were also present. The session involved more than 50 participants, including local cultivators, farmers, alumni, and students.
In his speech, Dr. Bijit Kumar Saud emphasized the Northeastern states’ and Assam’s distinctive biodiversity, highlighting the region’s abundance of plants and animals, especially in citrus farms. According to Ankur Gogoi, the organizing committee will award each participant with a certificate of participation at the end of the workshop, which will further encourage their involvement and education. In addition to empowering regional farmers, this project attempts to improve the area’s general agricultural environment.
