Meghalaya Govt harnessing floriculture industry

Staff Reporter

Shillong, Nov 1: The Government of Meghalaya has taken a significant stride in harnessing the region’s flourishing floriculture industry by hosting a two-day “Stakeholder consultation workshop on Unlocking opportunities in Meghalaya” with a focus on floriculture.

The event was held at the Courtyard by Marriott, on November 1st aimed at fostering comprehensive dialogue and idea exchange within the sector.

The workshop was graced by Dr M. Ampareen Lyngdoh, Minister of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare as the Chief Guest, Isawanda Laloo Secretary of the Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of Meghalaya, as the Guest of Honour, S. Kharsati Director of Agriculture, D. Sohtun Director of Horticulture, Hub managers from different parts of the state and Scientists, specialist researchers, as well as companies and associations.

Dr M. Ampareen Lyngdoh, Minister of the Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare in her speech, stated, “In our pursuit of fostering prosperity and opportunities, the Government of Meghalaya, under our Chief Minister’s guidance, has launched 14 Horti-hubs to promote floriculture and create employment beyond the public sector. We’re witnessing promising initiatives by farmer producer groups in Umsningand recognizing the potential in our rich biodiversity.

Initiatives like the Floriculture Development Scheme and the Prime Scheme bolster commercial floriculture and market-driven enterprises, benefiting both men and women. We’re actively seeking funding and exploring the synergy between tourism and floriculture, shaping a brighter future for Meghalaya”.

The Minister was confident of the motivation that these workshops give to the farmers to ensure that their products meet national and international standards and emphasized that floriculture is an inclusive field where both genders can thrive.

Laloo stated the significance of the workshops and added, “When we look at the data in the country, we find that India contributes to only 0.6 per cent of the global floriculture market which is a minuscule number and India and the state of Meghalaya has, therefore an immense potential to contribute to increasing the supply of flowers not only regionally, nationally, but also to the international market.

The Horticulture Department owns and manages up to 14 Horti hubs. They are distributed to each of the Khasi Jaintia regions. These horti hubs also facilitate the flower growers and the service providers in collecting, trading, and packaging, and finally to send off the flowers to the respective market destination.”

The workshop commenced with a presentation on the current state of floriculture in Meghalaya by the Department of Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare, setting the stage for the day’s discussions.

Brainstorming sessions addressed various facets of floriculture, from production techniques to market potential. Participants from across the country attended the programme, entrepreneurs, experts, florists actively shared their insights and expertise, identifying critical areas for growth.

Interactive sessions involving Hub Managers, Lead Farmers, and Florists offered practical experiences, challenges, and innovative solutions within the floriculture sector. The workshop concluded by outlining a strategic roadmap for unlocking the potential of Meghalaya’s floriculture industry, incorporating ideas and discussions.

The timing for the initiative was propitious, as the floriculture sector in Meghalaya is witnessing a surge in commercial potential, driven by the availability of improved planting materials, technical inputs, and a growing market demand. Overall, the ‘Unlocking the Potential of the Floriculture Sector in Meghalaya’ workshop marked a significant step toward realizing the region’s ambition of becoming a Northeastern hub for floriculture.

Meghalaya among 27 states to get new nursing colleges

Meghalaya will be one of the 27 states selected for the establishment of new nursing colleges.

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In a significant move towards strengthening nursing workforce in the country, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved the establishment of 157 new nursing colleges in co-location with the existing medical colleges established since 2014.

One of the 157 new nursing colleges will be established in Meghalaya.

The step will add approximately 15,700 nursing graduates every year.

This will further ensure quality, affordable, and equitable nursing education in India, particularly in underserved districts and States/Union Territories.  The total financial implication will be Rs 1,570 crore.

The initiative aims to address the geographical and rural-urban imbalances in the healthcare sector, which have led to the skewed availability of nursing professionals and impacted healthcare services in underserved areas. The establishment of these nursing colleges will provide a significant boost to the availability of qualified human resources in healthcare.

This is also being done as a part of the national mandate for Universal Health Care (UHC) and will help in attainment of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). Reforms in regulatory structure for Nursing education to meet with the emerging requirements in the sector are also under consideration.

National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) also collaborates with leading International & National agencies for skill development and placement of qualified nurses for overseas positions.

Co-location of these nursing colleges with existing medical colleges will allow optimal utilization of the existing infrastructure, skill labs, clinical facilities, and faculty.

This initiative is expected to provide better clinical exposure to nursing students and will also result in better care and service provision for patients in medical colleges. Use of green technologies will also be explored in these Nursing colleges and will be adopted as per relevancy to ensure energy efficiency and reduction in carbon footprint.

The Government plans to complete the project within next two years and has laid out detailed timelines for every stage of planning as well as execution of the project.

The Empowered Committee headed by the Union Health Secretary in the Centre and Principal Secretary, Health or Medical Education in the States will monitor the progress of the work.

The State Government/UTs will intimate to MoHFW on regular basis, the physical progress of the works being done for the establishment of new nursing colleges under the scheme.

There has been a tremendous focus of this government to ensure quality healthcare workforce with a substantial increase in their numbers. The Government has increased number of medical colleges and subsequently increased MBBS seats in last few years. There is a substantial increase of around 71 per cent in Medical Colleges from 387 before 2014 to 660 as of now.

Further, the number of MBBS seats has almost doubled and Post Graduate seats have more than doubled since 2013-14.

The services of Indian Nurses are considerably recognized in foreign countries, so it is important to bring Indian nursing education at par with global standards in order to facilitate their mobility and better employment opportunities. They are recognized as highly skilled professionals and drive the healthcare delivery system, but their numerical strength is below global norms and needs to be adequately enhanced.