KALAKTANG, Oct 8: Sixty-seven farmers and members of SHGs participated in a training programme on ‘entrepreneurship development through promotion of organic mushroom cultivation technology’ organized by Assam-based Bodoland University (BU) and Tezpur University (TU) here in West Kameng district from October 6-7.
During the programme, which was sponsored by NGO Yuva Arunachal, BU’s biotechnology associate professor Dr Sandeep Das made a PowerPoint presentation on cultivation of various types of mushrooms that could provide nutritional security and economic prosperity.
Dr Das and his team also demonstrated different tools and techniques required for organic mushroom cultivation using locally available resources as substrate.
As part of the first phase of hands-on training, around 50 cylinders of oyster mushroom were prepared by the participants and incubated in a low-cost scientific mushroom house developed under the guidance of experts from the two universities.
TU’s biotechnology assistant professor Dr Nima D Namsa informed that plan is underway to provide hands-on training to promote cultivation of other mushroom varieties, including medicinal mushroom, in the subsequent phase of the programme to empower the farmers of the locality.
Yuva Arunachal had earlier extended financial assistance to cultivate lemongrass and citronella as an alternative to paddy in elephant-affected Painaktang village in the Kalaktang-Balemu tehsil, informed Dr Namsa.
