Minister Jitendra Singh inaugurates Lavender festival at Bhaderwah town in Doda district

Lavender has given the small town of Bhaderwah in Doda district of Jammu division a national identity and also a national role in India’s growth story, said Union Minister Jitendra Singh while inaugurating 2-day ‘Lavender festival 2025’ organised by CSIR- IIIM.

Advertisement

Jitendra Singh lauded the agri-startup model of lavender farming as a transformative force that has rewritten the narrative of entrepreneurship in remote and hilly terrains.

“This single mission has answered multiple challenges,” Jitendra Singh said, “It busted the myth that startups are limited to IT or require foreign degrees. Our youth in J&K, in collaboration with CSIR-IIIM, have shown that passion, perseverance, and learning can build sustainable ventures rooted in agriculture” he added.

He claimed that young entrepreneurs in Bhaderwah are earning an average of Rs 65 lakhs annually through lavender cultivation and value-added products, motivating many others to leave conventional jobs and pursue farming as a lucrative business opportunity.

Jitendra Singh revealed that there are currently 50 distillation units operational in Bhaderwah, with lavender-derived products being supplied to markets in Maharashtra and other states. The model has not only attracted attention from neighboring states like Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, but also from the North-Eastern states, whose representatives were present at the festival to gain first-hand insights.

“This is a new paradigm the world is witnessing – a rural, agriculture-based startup revolution that is both scalable and sustainable,” he remarked. He also addressed the misconception that startups are only for the young, announcing a special exhibition featuring entrepreneurs aged 60 and above for the next festival edition.

In a broader economic context, Jitendra Singh noted, “India has moved from the 5th largest to the 4th largest economy, and sectors like lavender cultivation will further fuel our rise. Empowering these unexplored areas will create pillars of value addition and employment generation.” He also countered skepticism about India’s economic resilience amid aggressive defense postures, asserting that “despite challenging times and operations like Sindoor, India’s economy has not only remained buoyant but also grown. That is a fitting reply to skeptics.”