Guwahati: The Assam government will work with the Spices Board of India to explore potentiality of large-scale commercialisation of such agricultural products in the state, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Monday.
He asked the state agriculture department to start coordinating with the board for the purpose.
The scope for enhancing prospects and potential of the spices sector in the state was discussed during a meeting between the government and the board officials, according to a statement issued by the CMO.
The chief minister took an area-specific overview of the cultivation of spices in the state and stressed on the processing of the agricultural items to maintain quality, it said.
Considering the potentiality of high-value spices such as ginger, chilli and their varieties, he asked the agriculture department to use expertise of the Spices Board for large-scale commercialisation of these items.
According to the statement, Sarma said the state government will provide land for setting up a quality control laboratory.
The need for infrastructural and entrepreneurship development in the spices sector in the state was also discussed during the meeting.
Sarma asked Agriculture and Horticulture Minister Atul Bora to create modalities to work with the Spices Board for promotion of the sector in the state.
Both the agriculture department and the board will extensively work on the development of the sector, it said.
With at least 116 existing exporters of spices in the state, the state government will organise a conclave in Guwahati.
Principal Secretary to the chief minister, Samir Kumar Sinha, Agriculture secretary Vinod Seshan and functionaries from the Spices Board were present at the meeting, the statement added.PTI
