Entrepreneurs trained to tap value addition of agriculture

Meghalaya government is training about 10,000 potential entrepreneurs in the next three years in various untapped fields most of which are value addition of agricultural produce, an official said today.
The State Institute of Rural Development (SIRD) has signed an Mou with the Gujarat-based Entrepreneurship Development Institute (EDI) to implement Entrepreneurship Development Programmes which entails identifications of specific projects for the state, the official said.
"The MoU is being implemented in order to facilitate better income to the cultivators and is aimed at training 10,000 potential entrepreneurs in the next 3 years," SIRD Deputy Director B S Rumnong said while addressing a one day workshop on value addition of Chow Chow (squash) here.

Chow-chow or piskot is one such vegetable crop that can be found in abundance in the state but the underutilized and under exploited of this crop has deeply impacted the farmers.
Seeing the need of improving production and better marketing of this crop, the SIRD along with the EDI and Meghalaya Institute of Entrepreneurship (MIE) are working on the promotion of Chow Chow or Sechium edule as a viable crop for economic development of the state.
The workshop, the first of its kind in the state, is aimed at empowering the economic status of local entrepreneurs and farmers in general and in ensuring that the food crop that has rich medicinal properties does not go to waste, he said.

Manoj Mishra of EDI in his presentation, explained about the strategy and possibilities of better market and also about the customized business plan through various organs such as community based organization, local entrepreneurs and producers.

The SIRD has identified Laitkseh and Marngor Clusters and a few villages situated in close vicinity of the Rural Technology and Livelihood Promotion Centre, Nongbah Myrdon, to begin with as a pilot project.
Samples of the fruit have been sent to the Anand Agricultural University and National Chemical Laboratory, Pune for testing the scope for value addition, Rumnong said.
According to the SIRD official, a Chow Chow Fest will be held on the September 10 at the All Saints' Hall in the state capital where farmers and entrepreneurs can display the products which are being produced from Chow Chow.