SHILLONG, May 10: Meghalaya has become the first state in the entire North East to begin extraction of curcumin from turmeric, according to Chief Minister Conrad Sangma, who has also pointed out that at present, the process of extraction is ‘indigenous’ but in the near future, better technology with global acceptability will be introduced.
Curcumin is a bright yellow chemical isolated from the plant Curcuma longa, commonly known as turmeric, with a variety of pharmacologic properties.
Speaking at the Lakadong Festival, which is being held for the first time, in Laskein, West Jaintia Hills, the chief minister said, “The government will get the best standard equipment and ensure that the product from Meghalaya finds its market globally”.
As part of the Lakadong Mission, the CM handed over turmeric washer and polisher machines to four Lakadong Farming Societies identified by the Meghalaya Farmers’ (Empowerment) Commission.
He also inaugurated the Collective Marketing Centres at Thadmuthlong, Shangpung and Laskein Mowtyrshiah under the Lakadong Mission.
The Chief Minister was accompanied by Mookaiaw MLA, Nurjorki Sungoh, Chairman of Meghalaya Farmers’ (Empowerment) Commission, KN Kumar, and other officials from the Department of Agriculture and Farmer’s Welfare.
Speaking to the gathering which comprised Lakadong turmeric farmers of the district, the CM said the Lakadong Festival is a culmination of a journey which started four years ago when concern were being expressed about the difficulties faced by the these farmers.
“It was then that we decided that we must go in a mission mode in order to push the production as well as value addition of Lakadong turmeric,” he said.
He also pointed out that departments work in silos without coordination between one another and officers and departments work on a scheme-based process, which is why the outcome or the output is not as desired.
“The target should be to increase the income of the farmers by increasing productivity of the farmers by providing them training and capacity building,” he added.
He further said that in the last few years, the government has endeavoured to shift the goal of the department to a much-broader goal, which is the farmers’ welfare, by increasing production and thereby increasing income.
“Therefore, we realized that the Lakadong turmeric requires a mission-mode approach and focusing on the entire value chain that starts with giving the seeds to the farmers, training them on how to take care of the product, helping them in processing, packaging and marketing. It is all these steps that matter for the farmer and the government’s job is to ensure that we see the entire spectrum and help the farmer,” the CM said.
When Meghalaya celebrates its diamond jubilee, the state should be in the list of top 10 states in the entire country in terms of its GSDP, Sangma said. “We have a plan and a strategy for achieving our targets and we will work collectively to ensure that we achieve our goals in ensuring that our people reap its benefits,” he explained.
It may be noted that that agriculture is the main source of livelihood for the people in Meghalaya and the sector contributes 22 per cent of GSDP.
Expressing happiness over state owning its own curcumin content testing unit, the CM said, “There was a time when the curcumin content had to be measured in Kolkata. It would take 10 days but today we did it in 10 minutes out here”.
The chief minister informed the gathering that the programme will be replicated throughout the state for other food products.
“Programmes like this have potential for Agro Tourism and that is also one of the purposes of having this festival and why we call it the Lakadong Festival and not just a Lakadong conference is because we feel that we need to celebrate this product that we have been blessed with and should be proud of so therefore it’s something we must celebrate and ensure that we are able to take this forward,” he said.
