The Hindu Business Line : Growers call for formation of floriculture board

Nilgiris florists who attended the Third International Flora Exhibition and Conference held in New Delhi last week have called for formation of a floriculture board on the lines of tea, coffee, rubber and spices board with a geological focus to boost the Nilgiris floriculture trade.

“Considering the quality and variety, flowers from Nilgiris are among the best in the world. But, the absence of a focussed attempt to develop the sector with a matching sympathy for fiscal support is telling upon our progress heavily,” said Dr S. Ramu, Executive Director, Hill Queen Agri Tech ( hillqueen@dataone.in).

Many representatives of floriculture units in the district have returned with hopes for boosting the sales of Nilgiris flowers both within the country and abroad.

“We used the occasion to interact with a large number of buyers in upcountry markets and also foreign destinations. We visited the cut flower markets in Delhi and interacted with the traders. We studied the preferences of the end users and price trends. The Nilgiris has a bright future,” Dr Ramu said.

Organised support

Still, growers fear that floriculture trade cannot be boosted without an organised support, as the units are scattered and unorganised. At the national level, a 10-hectare farm is recognised as a large unit, but in the Nilgiris there is no such unit.

It would serve little purpose if the task of development is left to the growers themselves. There are limitations relating to expertise in the modern systems of cultivation and marketing strategies, unhealthy competition, and some vested interests working to prevent the entry of fresher units. “That’s why we need a departmental support through a floriculture board. We also need a focus on the Nilgiris with a target-based approach because the growers are suffering from economic depression for over six years due to the tea industry failing their hopes,” Dr Ramu said.

Slow progress

Even after declaring the Nilgiris as agricultural export zone and setting up a flower auction centre, the progress of floriculture trade is tardy. “We have good weather and all over the world, buyers are asking for our flowers. Our flowers are priced high in Bangalore and Delhi markets.

“So, we have bright future if the growers resort to good green house system, use of quality planting materials, proper drip irrigation system and scientific cultural practices. All these involve investment and if the Government helps in this it would boost the sector and add to the Government’s revenue,” said Mr H. Vasudevan, Chairman of Hill Queen.

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