PASIGHAT, 31 Aug: The foundation stone for an integrated oil palm factory was jointly laid by Patanjali Ayurved Ltd CEO Acharya Balkrishna and minister for agriculture Tage Taki at Niglok Industrial Growth Centre in East Siang district on Wednesday.
Speaking on the occasion, Taki informed that the union cabinet in August last year had approved measures to increase oil palm area and production in the country to boost the economy. “Later, the state government led by Chief Minister Pema Khandu, after a series of surveys and discussions with experts/scientists
on suitability and future prospect and the prevailing climatic condition and availability of land etc., decided to establish the mill and nurseries in the state, besides encouraging the cultivators for assured income and employment generation,” the minister said.
India is the world’s second largest consumer and number one importer of vegetable oil. The country relies on imports to meet over 70 per cent of its vegetable oil requirements, he added.
Balakrishna termed the occasion as historic for the state and the nation as well. He informed that Patanjali Foods Limited has signed a MoU with APIDFCL for the oil palm processing unit at Niglok.
He informed that the company is the first in the state to import high quality hybrid variety imported seed sprouts from selected identified countries for benefit of the farmers and that employment generation in agro sector can be achieved through such initiatives.
“Such initiative will give impetus to the National Mission on Edible Oil-Oil Palm (NMEO-OP) to make India self-reliant in edible oil and also the doubling of farmers’ income,” Balakrishna said.
MLAs Ninong Ering, Kaling Moyong, Lombo Tayeng and Gabriel D Wangsu, union agriculture and farmers welfare joint secretary Subha Thakur, industries secretary Bidol Tayeng, APIDFCL chairman Wanglong Rajkumar, trade and commerce secretary Hage Tari, ICAR director Ravi Kumar Mathur, DC Tayi Taggu and SP Sumit Kumar Jha were present on the occasion. (DIPRO)
