Administration to promote chamomile flower, black tulsi cultivation in Kangra district

Dharamsala, February 8

Advertisement

After success at Paddar village in Kangra, the district administration is planning to promote cultivation of chamomile flowers and black tulsi in other areas of the district through women self-help groups.

Earlier, the experiment of motivating rural women to grow chamomile flowers was started at Paddar village. Women of the self-help group at the village have successfully grown two crops of chamomile flowers and black tulsi on their fields.

Sudershana Devi, a member of Vaishno Self-Help Group, says she got the idea of cultivating chamomile flowers and black tulsi from a workshop organised by the Block Development Office in Dharamsala.

She says, “I decided to grow chamomile flowers and black tulsi on one-bigha land instead of traditional crops of wheat and paddy. I attended workshops in Mandi and Solan districts to learn the intricacies of cultivating these crops.”

“Initially, the department provided us free seeds. Also, it is for the first time that we were given wages according to MNREGA scheme for cultivating our own crops. Till date, I have grown 30-kg chamomile flowers on one bigga land and earned Rs 14,000, besides getting wages under MNREGA,” she adds.

Asha Devi, another member of the Vaishno Self-Help Group, says, “We are not using any chemical fertiliser or pesticides in the cultivation of chamomile flowers and black tulsi. We are planning to devote more land for such crops, including plants like ashwagandha, in the coming days.”

Kangra Deputy Commissioner Nipun Jindal says, “After success in Paddar village, we intend to replicate the model in other areas of the district.”

“A programme has been started under the aegis of the Union and state governments to provide self-employment to rural women. There are 420 self-help groups in Dharamsala block that will be motivated to take up the cultivation of cash crops like chamomile flowers and medicinal herbs,” he added.

Sources here say that presently, the government was selling the produce of Paddar village through bigger self-help groups of the state. However, the Rural Development Department is also trying to tie up with online marketing platforms such as Amazon and Flipkart to sell the organic produce.

Officials are of the view that since the produce of small women self-help groups of Himachal is totally organic, it can fetch a higher price in the market and boost the income of members associated with them.