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K. Ananthan

For healthy world: Former Minister of Malaysia, Mr Sulaiman Haji Daud, (third from right) releasing the souvenir at the World Neem Conference 2007 in Coimbatore on Wednesday. Along with him are (from left): Ms Nirmala Kothari, Programme Secretary; Ms Pramila Thakkar, Managing Trustee of the Need Foundation; Mr K.S. Hegde, Managing Director of T.Stanes & Co.Ltd; Mr Malcolm K Wegener of University of Queensland, Australia; and Mr Ramesh C. Saxena, Chairman, Neem Foundation. –

G. Gurumurthy

Coimbatore, Nov. 21 The fifth World Neem Conference opened here on Wednesday with a call for endeavour from all stakeholders for magnifying the reach of the “miracle” plant of neem for all.

The conference being organised under the aegis of Neem Foundation, Mumbai, in collaboration with industry/research institutions has drawn participation from scientists, universities/academicians, end-user industries/neem processors and government agencies from over 30 countries.

The four-day deliberation of the conference is set on the theme ‘Neem for a safe and healthy world’ with special focus on issues such as neem chemistry, fertiliser/pesticides, neem in biotechnology, socio-economic issues, human and animal health, pest control, neem in health products, product registration, genetic improvement and neem plantations and legal and statutory process.

Former Malaysian Minister for Agriculture, Dr Sulaiman Haji Daud, chief guest of the inaugural session of the conference, voiced concern over the ecological damages caused by indiscriminate use of pesticides and “chemicalisation” of agriculture.

Neem considered for long to possess potential anti-pollutant properties and anti toxins is a storehouse of phyto-biochemicals that could be tapped for different agri purposes.

Today’s safety considerations, according to Dr Daud, on environment, human and animal health have brought neem into limelight once again and the promoters should accord importance to micro-propagation involving cotyledon, nodal stem bits or shoot tips for achieving plant multiplication and scientific method of collection of neem products.

Among those present at the inaugural session include the Chairman of the organising committee of the conference and Managing Director of T. Stanes and Company, Mr K.S. Hegde, Dr Malcolm K. Wegener (senior research fellow in agriculture), University of Queensland, Australia, and the Managing Trustee of Neem Foundation, Ms Pramila Thakkar.

The conference, which will go into the follow-up of last world neem conference held five years ago in Mumbai, is expected to come out with recommendations towards strengthening neem conservation with a view to achieving recognition for it as ‘a national tree’.

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