Spices Board to set up mini-spice park in Arunachal Pradesh

The Spices Board of India has approved establishment of a mini spice park for ginger here in collaboration with the state government.
Dr Hatobin Mai, the lone member of the Spices Board from the North East region today said the newly constituted Spices Board took the decision during its meeting held at Kochi on June 23.
Land for the proposed park would be provided by the state government and Spices Board would give other technical and strategic support.
During the meeting Mai called for restructuring and revamping of the Spices Board to increase its outreach in the potential states of the North East with special emphasis on Arunachal Pradesh and that the policy framework of the Board needed to be aligned with the challenges of the region.

He also highlighted that the climatic conditions of the North East and appealed for "a proper safety net for the cultivators in the form of increased subsidies, infrastructure provisions and other related factors which may be specially considered for the region."
The Spices Board should also initiate major training and awareness drives for working in better co-ordination with all stakeholders including government and non-government agencies, he said.

Other concerns like proper marketing linkages to increase export competitiveness of the region were also placed for consideration of the Board, Mai said.
The Board has assured that infrastructure development and optimum manpower deployment in the region would be undertaken in a phased manner, he said adding, it was resolved that more emphasis would be given to NE states for organic spices and a proper road map would be prepared soon.

The Board would also set up spices parks in Meghalaya and Manipur, Mai said.